Restaurant, more concerts coming to historic venue By Avice Meehan When Dave Rosenfeld walked onto the starlit stage at Infinity Hall, many of the more than 200 people gathered to hear what he had to say, were unsure about what to expect. The co-founder of GoodWorks Entertainment, which acquired the green Victorian gem of a […]
Generations come together to refresh a century-long legacy By Jude Mead Music from singers young and old filled Battell Chapel on May 22 as the Litchfield County Choral Union (LCCU) joined the Torrington High School choir for a collaborative concert aimed at connecting generations of choral musicians. Organizers hope the successful event will become an […]
Coach Sebach is retiring from Regional 7 By Rex Crippen Doug Sebach, Boys’ Varsity Head Basketball Coach at Northwestern Regional 7 High School (NW7), announced his retirement earlier this season. Sebach, who had served Northwestern as a coach for 22 years, ended his tenure with 332 career wins, six regular season Berkshire League championships and […]
By Kevin D. Case The Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents’ Student Leadership Award is an annual honor presented by the Connecticut Association of Public School Superintendents (CAPSS). It recognizes outstanding middle school students who demonstrate exemplary leadership, academic prowess, and a strong commitment to community service. Each local school district’s Superintendent selects a student […]
Aton Forest has a long history in Norfolk By Carol Goodstein Along with a growing population of moose, black bear and red fox, Norfolk’s roughly 1,500 residents have plenty of room to roam. Great Mountain Forest, The Norfolk Land Trust, state-owned lands and public parks welcome hikers, bikers, skiers, strollers and even, to a limited […]
Peter Brown Peter Brown, 70 years old, of East Canaan passed away Sunday, May 17, 2026, in his home. He was the loving husband of Sandra Brown. Peter was born on December 27, 1955, at Sharon Hospital to Abraham “Bucky” Brown and Rosalie Freund Brown. He graduated from Housatonic Valley Regional High School and Northwestern […]
Rhubarb Heralds the Spring By Marie-Christine Perry The first edible in my garden is usually rhubarb, followed quickly by asparagus, both valued in my kitchen—fresh and preserved! Beyond the celebrated strawberry rhubarb pie, I like rhubarb in many guises: in compote, jam, chutney and cake, but also in unexpected savory dishes, where its acidity is […]
Designed by architect Alfredo Taylor and still standing at the end of Golf Drive, this pavilion was built on the nine-hole Norfolk Downs as a gathering place for golfers. The large central room with cobblestone walls and a massive stone fireplace once had glazed windows on the north side, while the terrace on the south […]
A season of student and community activity By Patricia Platt For over 80 years, the Ellen Battell Stoeckel Trust has endowed Yale University’s summer music and art programs in Norfolk. The renowned Yale Norfolk School of Art opens the 2026 summer season on May 23, before the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival begins, and shares its […]
Northwest Farm to Fork launches at Norbrook By Andra Moss When Devin Grosso and her husband moved to Norfolk in 2024, she was disappointed to learn that the town’s farmers market had permanently closed just the year before. However, a chance meeting at the Botelle School garden with Lisa Auclair, who had managed the Norfolk […]
Family history and the truth behind Dudleytown By Jude Mead The Dudley name, with roots stretching back to 14th-century England, carries with it a long and often dramatic history. For Susan Dudley of Winchester, that legacy has been a lifelong source of curiosity—particularly her family’s connection to Dudleytown, the long-abandoned settlement hidden within Cornwall’s Dark […]
By Susannah Wood There is a singer everyone has heard, Loud, a mid-summer and a mid-wood bird, Who makes the solid tree trunks sound again. —Robert Frost Even if you are not a birder but find yourself anywhere near the Norfolk woods come late April or early May and on into summer, […]
Learn, Love, Grow By Ruth Melville On May 5, Kailyn Nadeau and Paige Corey celebrated their fifth year as directors of the Norfolk Early Education Center (NELC), their state-licensed child-care facility for children from as young as six weeks up to 12 years old. For over 10 years, Nadeau and Corey had worked at […]
Transformed space is open to all By Chris Sinclair The many stone walls running through the New England landscape may well reflect the entrenched belief that, as Robert Frost put it, “Good fences make good neighbors.” But this New England town has opted for a somewhat different approach in the form of the Norfolk […]
By Janet G. Mead “So you think your dog’s got talent?” was the hook Ellie Crone, 15, and Kendra Link, 14, came up with to lure donors to their benefit for the National Disaster Search Dog Foundation, held Saturday, May 26, at Botelle School—and it worked! More than 60 people and 20 dogs were in […]
By Ruth Melville This summer marks the 70th anniversary of the Yale Norfolk Summer School of Art, and the 20th year under the directorship of Sam Messer, a professor and former associate dean at the Yale University School of Art. Housed in the Art Barn on the Battell Stoeckel Estate, the summer program is […]
Out and About By Colleen Gundlach There are few restaurants in the area that can say they prepare their entire menu fresh daily, and even fewer that start cooking the day’s food at 5:45 a.m. For Lou and Gina Gabriel, however, this is their reality, because developing the deep, rich flavors of barbecue takes […]
Local observation station is longtime contributor to national network By Wiley Wood The three spindly lilac bushes growing near the cooperative weather station on Windrow Road don’t look like much, but they are an unusually well-documented trio of plants. Not the common lilac, which is more lushly flowered, they are a clone, Syringa chinensis […]
Botelle School budget takes major hit By Wiley Wood Town taxes will rise about 4.5 percent in the coming year, according to Board of Finance Chairman Michael Sconyers, who spoke at the town’s annual budget hearing on April 24. “I really don’t like the budget,” said Sconyers, who explained that a decrease in allocations […]
Membership will meet to decide course of action By Wiley Wood A modest brick building beside the Blackberry River going toward Canaan houses Norfolk’s wastewater treatment plant. Bill Hester, the plant’s superintendent, points out a sunken concrete box near the building into which a 12-inch pipe discharges water. Although the influent looks only slightly […]
By Colleen Gundlach When Erastus Johnson built his stately Gilded Age home on the knoll just south of Norfolk’s Village Green in 1900, he named it Wildwood. This was a name that stayed with the property through its next owner, H.E. Adriance, a wealthy New York City resident who kept Wildwood as his summer […]
For Linda Perkins, Memorial Day is an important holiday, not only for the nation but for the small town of Norfolk. As she puts it, “It’s the one time we gather as a town community to honor those who served our country. They deserve to be remembered. We owe them a debt of gratitude.” But […]
By Ruth Melville Wanting to escape what she calls “a suburban prison,” Angela Luna Grano decided to buy a farm and move to Norfolk, drawn here by the town’s natural beauty. Grano, who is a federally licensed wildlife rehabilitator, says that she “felt a certain spirituality in these woods.” She wanted her two daughters […]