• Proposed Manor House Expansion Draws Large Crowd

    Many differing views on effect of change in town center By Susan MacEachron Norfolk residents filled the Botelle School Hall of Flags on a very cold evening on Tuesday, Jan. 14, to attend the Planning & Zoning (P&Z) public hearing regarding a modification to the special permit granted in 1996 to the property known as […]

  • From All Angels

    Throughout the month of February, Garet&Co will be returning to Norfolk to present their third annual performance in the Battell Chapel, where each piece will be set in the round.  In this presentation, titled “From All Angles”, the audience will witness the translation of three of the works presented at their fall show.   “Can’t Keep […]

  • Norfolk Then

    Pictured here is the house built in 1898 by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Spofford as their summer home. The son of Ainsworth Spofford, Librarian of Congress, Charles Spofford was an electrical engineer, who would be hired in 1902 to manage London’s underground railway system, converting it from steam to electricity. The Spoffords engaged the architect […]

  • Sweets on the Green

    A Decade of Decadent Desserts By Andra Moss How is your naughty versus nice rating? Those needing to influence Santa with an especially impressive treat should grab their stockings and head to the Norfolk Historical Society (NHS) for the 10th Annual Cake Auction on Saturday, Dec. 7.     Now a Norfolk holiday tradition, the event was […]

  • Artist Tom Burr Brings His Torrington Project to an End

    Performances celebrate studio closing By Stephen Melville Norfolk resident and artist Tom Burr organized a day of performances and exhibition at his studio in Torrington on Oct. 26, marking an end to what he has called “The Torrington Project.” For the past three and a half years, Burr has rented a vast—15,000 square foot—former industrial […]

  • New Meanings for a Monument

    Light Shines on the Memorial Green By Joe Kelly On Monday, Nov. 11, Veterans Day, a crowd of about 100 gathered for the rededication of Norfolk’s World War 1 memorial, artfully restored under the auspices of the Norfolk Community Association. It was sunny. Temperatures in the low ‘60’s. Another day of no rain. Everyone talked […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    This 1920s postcard shows Memorial Green just after the War Memorial, designed by Alfredo Taylor, was built. It was Taylor’s wife Minna who first proposed that a memorial “heroes grove” be planted on the small lot of land known as the Triangle opposite the Catholic Church. The lot had been left empty with the demolition […]

  • Restored war memorial to be celebrated on veterans day

    plaque now honors all who served By Patricia Platt A World War I monument, designed by Alfredo Taylor and erected on Norfolk’s Memorial Green in 1921, bears the inscription, “for those who gave and those who offered their lives for liberty, the people of Norfolk have built this monument and crowned it with the Liberty […]

  • NLT Tail Ablaze with Runners

    More than 120 runners enjoyed perfect fall weather as they wound their way through picturesque Barbour Woods in the 11th Annual Norfolk Land Trust Trail Race. Some chose to add a challenging loop over Haystack Mountain, while the half-marathoners just kept moving on up—topping out at over 2,000 feet of elevation gain. *photo by June […]

  • Can you spot the Real Curler?

    There was movie magic ice to be made, and the pros of the Norfolk Curling Club were the first to get the call. In October, NCC’s Jon Barbagallo, Lou Barbagallo, Rachel Barbagallo, Mark Walsh, Harvey Chalmers and Phill West were hired by a production company to make curling ice at a Rhode Island hockey rink […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    This 1917 photograph is a timely reminder of the long struggle fought by many dedicated women for basic civil liberties, including the right to own property, hold public office, sit on juries, participate in public assemblies and vote. The group of 25 suffragists—20 women and five men—gathered on the porch following their meeting with Congressman […]

  • The chicken who wanted to be a star and other tales from a norfolk movie set

    By Andra Moss Secrets and small towns don’t often pair well, and Norfolk is a small town. Yet, for eight weeks this summer, a crew of nearly 100 people quietly transformed Tim and Paula Webster’s 1908 Norfolk farmhouse into a film set for a feature-length production, all the while staying under the local radar.  It […]

Articles

Land Trust Clears 18 Acres in Barbour Woods

Many wildlife species need young forest habitat By Wiley Wood Photographs by Bruce Frisch The silence in Barbour Woods has been broken in recent weeks by the sound of heavy machinery. Its broad public paths and mature forest of mixed hardwoods have made Barbour Woods a favorite of birders, dog walkers and Sunday strollers. But […]

Connecticut Faces Severe Drought

Groundwater reserves in Norfolk appear ample   By Janet G. Mead On Nov. 15, after two years of scant rainfall and snow, one of the hottest summers on record and a warm fall, the U.S. Drought Monitor (USDM) reported that almost half of Connecticut (44.5 percent), including the Northwest Corner, is in a condition of […]

Berkshire Country Store Plans Late December Opening

The Berkshire Country Store is scheduled to open at 6 Station Place in late December, according to a press release by Norfolk’s Economic Development Commission (EDC). The work of converting the generic retail space into a functioning food service and grocery store has been assisted, under the direction of store owner Ryan Craig, by many […]

Burnt to the Ground, Now Stronger Than Ever

Five years after the fire, the Norfolk Curling Club is thriving   By Leila Javitch Back in December 2011, two teenagers on a drug-fueled rampage burned the Norfolk Curling Club to the ground. Now, five years later, it can boast of a remarkable recovery. The club’s situation was drastic after the fire in 2011. The […]

Simplified Form of CPR Now Widely Recommended

Norfolk Ambulance will teach the skill at Dec. 3 Farmers Market   By Wiley Wood If someone near you suffers cardiac arrest, the best response is still to call 911 and start CPR, or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, according to Christopher Little, chief of Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance. But the American Heart Association now recommends a simplified […]

Norfolk Voters Turned Out in High Numbers for Clinton

Republicans Witkos and Ohler won crossover vote in local contests   By Wiley Wood Voter turnout in Norfolk was high, with 86 percent of the town’s electorate casting a ballot in the election. The presidential vote went to Clinton (547 to 373), but in two local races, a majority of Norfolk residents voted for the […]

State Renews City Meadow Grant

Completion expected by December 2017   By Wiley Wood Plans for a park in the sunken wetland below Station Place were dropped with a thud last April when time ran out to complete the project before the funding deadline. But on October 4, First Selectman Sue Dyer announced that the entire original grant of $500,000 from […]

Advice for Voters From the Norfolk Town Clerk

By Wiley Wood   In this lively election season, no one is likely to forget that Election Day falls on November 8, the second Tuesday of November. The Norfolk polling station, on the second floor of Town Hall at 19 Maple Avenue, will be open from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. “Be sure you’re registered,” […]

New Head Chef at Infinity Bistro

By Lindsey Pizzica Rotolo If Infinity Bistro has fallen out of your lineup for weekend dining options, it’s time to bring it back. The hot, freshly baked bread and garlic butter are good indicators of what flavorsome items are to come. The pulled chicken tacos, one of the best-selling items on the menu, are worth […]

Town Meeting Planned for November 14

Refinancing old debt and taking on a new loan   At the selectmen’s meeting on October 4, First Selectman Sue Dyer announced plans to call a town meeting in November. Resolutions will be presented to refinance the town’s existing debt and to borrow additional money to purchase trucks. The town is carrying somewhat less than […]

Alfredo Taylor’s 1905 Decorative Railing Lamps Again Illuminate Village

  by Michael Kelly Long before Route 44 became the speedway it is for cars and trucks whizzing through the heart of the village, most people entered and departed Norfolk deliberately, by way of the railroad. Passengers sharing comfortable parlor cars could hop on and off at 23 stations as the train meandered along steel […]

Tiffany Sunrise Off for Repairs

Community Foundation Helps With Costs   By Shelley Harms The first phase of Battell Chapel’s stained glass windows project took a surprising turn in early October. Original plans called for the large center altar window, by Maitland Armstrong, to be restored first. David Maitland Armstrong was one of the foremost stained glass artists of the gilded […]