• great blue heron rookeries

    working together to provide sustainable breeding habitats By Jude Mead Great Blue Herons are a familiar sight in Norfolk and are one of the largest of all North American herons, standing up to four feet tall with a wingspan of close to six feet. They are most noticeable in flight as they soar across the […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    Tennis at Town Hall? The building we know as Town Hall was originally the Eldridge Gymnasium, built in 1892. Located within easy walking distance of hotels and boarding houses in Norfolk at the turn of the last century, the Gymnasium was a popular gathering place for both residents and visitors. People played croquet on the lawn […]

  • Looking Back Over the Years

    The End of an Era for Norfolk Now By Colleen Gundlach After 10 years and over 30 issues, Ruth Melville has put on her Norfolk Now editor’s hat for the last time. In June, the paper marked the end of an era with the publication of Ruth’s final issue as one of the executive editors […]

  • A Look Into Norfolk’s Past

    Exhibit Explores Pupin’s Haven of Happiness on Westside Road By Patricia Platt The Norfolk Historical Museum graces Norfolk’s village green with the reserve and understated elegance of a New Englander well worth getting to know. Visitors who step inside will find exhibits that tell the stories of the town’s past, often with intriguing ties to […]

  • Norfolk Past and Present

    The Summer Chapel Eases Gracefully Into Its 130 Years By Elizabeth Bailey Ayreslea Rowland Denny began attending services at The Church of the Transfiguration in Norfolk in 1939 on the eve of World War II. A New Yorker, she was a student at the Chapin School in New York City, but her family had been […]

  • Church Steeple Shines Once Again

    Local dignitaries and friends of Norfolk’s Church of Christ Congregational gathered on Saturday, May 25, to formally celebrate the completion of the steeple restoration project. The Rev. Erick Olsen thanked the community for supporting the years-long effort and welcomed everyone to enjoy a splendid cake featuring an image of the steeple.

  • Making the Native… Personal

    Cheryl Heller Builds a Wild Garden in Norfolk By Joe Kelly Gardens are best when they’re personal, argued the late Fred McGourty, who remains Norfolk’s best- known plantsmen. McGourty’s 1989 book, “The Perennial Gardener,” recounts the gardens he and his wife, Mary Ann, created at Hillside, their home near Dennis Hill State Park. Were he […]

  • This Old Norfolk House

    Stevens House By Joe KellyWhen our Puritan forebears arrived on these shores in the early 1600s, they were no doubt surprised todiscover how the traditional thatched roof cottages they knew from back home were no match for thewind and cold of a typical New England winter. But it would have likely surprised them even more […]

  • Can wildlife safely cross Norfolk’s Roads?

    By Shelley Harms Where are animals crossing Norfolk’s roads? Are they making it across? Is it possible to make theircrossings safer? Julia Rogers, Senior Land Protection Manager at the Housatonic Valley Association (HVA), helped agroup of interested Norfolk residents explore these questions at a training session sponsored by theNorfolk Land Trust on March 22 at […]

  • Great Mountain Forest’s New Executive Director Returns to His Connecticut Roots

    By David Beers Mike Zarfos started his new position as executive director of Great Mountain Forest (GMF) at the end ofFebruary. It has been a lively time for Zarfos and his family; in addition to moving from Washington,D.C., to Connecticut, they are expecting a baby in April. Zarfos grew up in Deep River, Conn., where […]

  • Norfolk Then…

    In the late 19th century, the arrival of every train at the depot on Station Place was widely anticipated.There were freight trains, milk trains and passenger trains unloading throngs of summer visitors. Theattractive station pictured here was built in 1898, replacing an earlier modest structure. Constructed ofnative granite, it was designed by Hill & Turner, […]

  • Focus on New Firehouse shifts to funding

    Costs likely to rise beyond initial $5 million estimate By Joe Kelly After months of sometimes contentious public hearings, plans for a new Norfolk firehouse are nearing the end of the wetlands/zoning part of the approval process and heading into a decisive new phase: finding the money to pay for it all. The Planning & […]

Articles

It’s a Tough Life For Beekeepers

By Lindsey Pizzica Rotolo Honeybees are not native to North America, but records show that colonies of the adept honey makers were shipped to Connecticut from England as early as 1644. Beekeeping in our neck of the woods is as old a tradition as we have, and one testament to our Yankee resolve, as beekeeping […]

Aija Moves Into Hardware Store Building Across Street

By Janet Gokay Why did the chicken cross the road? We put this question to Bella Erder, owner of Aija, the gift, jewelry and accessory store currently on the second floor of the Royal Arcanum Building downtown. On Nov. 1 she will be moving across the street to 6 Station Place, which has laid vacant […]

On Call With The Norfolk Ambulance

By Christopher Little Small as Norfolk is, residents in urgent need of help can count on a dedicated response from trained EMTs and drivers, all volunteers of the Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance. The editors have asked Deputy Chief Christopher Little to describe his experiences. Names and details have been changed. As in police work, an […]

Norfolk 2023! Event Draws Strong Community Support

By Wiley Wood When the doors of Infinity Hall opened at 9:30 a.m. on October 5, the staff of Norfolk Now wondered a little nervously why anyone would give up a perfectly good Saturday morning to wrangle about Norfolk’s future. In fact, just over 150 residents of Norfolk attended, and their reasons appeared to cover […]

Missing Funds Investigated At Botelle PTO

No money in PTO account for children’s programs By Shelley Harms Members of the Botelle Elementary School Parent Teacher Organization were shocked to discover in September that nearly all the money was missing from the PTO bank account. Only about $1,000 remained of what should have been at least a $12,000 balance, with bills of […]

November 5 Is Election Day

Register, Get Your Absentee Ballot This Month The candidates have been chosen for this year’s municipal elections on November 5. Norfolk is fortunate to have so many citizens willing to take on these important public service roles. Coming out to vote is one way to show your support for them. Registering to vote is quick […]

It’s Time To Think About Your Health (Coverage)

A new health exchange wants to help the uninsured By Veronica Burns It is estimated that there are 344,000 individuals in the state of Connecticut who either do not have any health insurance or are underinsured. That should start to change on October 1, when open enrollment begins as part of the implementation of the […]

Northwestern Regional Robotics Team Gears Up For 3rd Season

By Megan Llewellyn Each member of the Northwestern Robotics Gearheads, NRG, started 2013 with one goal in mind: to build a robot capable of shooting Frisbees and climbing pyramids. To accomplish their goal, NRG spent six intense weeks designing, building, wiring, and programming a robot. The result was an eighty pound robot capable of shooting […]

Church of Christ Celebrates Erick Olsen’s Tenth Anniversary as Pastor

By Sally Quale The Church of Christ Congregational in Norfolk held its regular 10 a.m. service on Sunday, September 15 in the Battell Chapel, as opposed to the usual Church chancel, to mark the opening day of Sunday School classes for the year. Unbeknownst to Pastor Erick Olsen, however, this arrangement also facilitated a surprise […]

The Joint Chiefs to Play Ambulance Benefit at Infinity Hall

By Grant Mudge The Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance (NLCA) is pleased to have The Joint Chiefs of Salisbury, CT, play a benefit concert at Infinity Hall on Wednesday October 9 at 8 p.m. Known for their “tight harmonies and loose attitude,” The Joint Chiefs play a delightful mix of homespun music and country folk. The […]

Agricultural Fair a Success

By Sally Quale Norfolk’s first Agricultural Fair, which took place on August 24 at the weekly farmer’s market on Maple Avenue, was “a huge success and will be repeated next year on Saturday, August 14, 2014,” reports market manager Lisa Auclair. It ran an hour longer than the usual market – 4 rather than 3 […]

Plans For New Firehouse Go To Finance Board

Town Would Borrow Money Through a Bond Issue/ By Wiley Wood Plans for a new firehouse were presented to the Board of Finance on August 13. The design, which incorporates and expands the existing building on Shepard Rd., was described by architect Michael Fortuna as “pretty bare bones.” Total costs are budgeted at $2.7 million. […]