• 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 […]

  • 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, […]

Articles

Conservation Commission to Replace Shrubs at Town Hall In one of its first acts, the newly formed Conservation Commission will remove alien invasive species from the front of Town Hall and replace them with non-invasive natives. Their goal is to complete the transformation in one day, Saturday May 2. Slated for removal and disposal are […]

At the Library

Rare Book Room By Sally Quale “It’s beautiful!” exclaimed Co-Director Robin Yuran, describing the recently-completed Rare Book Room, another part of the Norfolk Library’s current capital improvements project. The new room is actually a refurbished meeting room on the second floor that now boasts walls of warm, wooden shelving, and is heat and humidity regulated. […]

Another Torch Passed

Norfolk’s Memorial Day ceremonies on May 26 will be marked by the annual parade of marching bands, school groups and servicemen and women. An 81-year- old Navy veteran will not be marching this year. Hobbled by arthritis, Colebrook resident Peter Giansiracusa will ride in a horse-drawn buggy as he has done for the past five […]

“Bella,” Based on “Our Town,” Comes to Life at the Library

The annual play performed by the women of the Isabella Eldridge Club at the library had the look of a costume party.  Jack O’Malley’s deftly written  script of “Bella” used Thorton Wilder’s “Our Town” as a template to reflect on life in Norfolk in the late 1800’s. Directed by Ann Havemeyer, the cast and extras […]

Zone 4: Spring Planting Choices

By Mark A. Tonan Spring is soon to be upon us, and plants are on a lot of people’s minds. Annuals, perennials, woody plants, ground covers, and edibles are all well suited to spring planting and will become widely available as the weather warms. These plants come in many forms and have certain signs to […]

Special Needs Program at Botelle Benefits All Students

By Timothy Lee Botelle School is home to the Intensive Education Program, or IEP, that serves the educational needs of severely disabled students who range in age from six to 16 and present a variety of challenges in the areas of mobility, communication and self-care. They are typically in wheelchairs and require adult support in […]

Grant Applications Invited From Area Artists and Writers

A newly incorporated foundation based in Norfolk and known as AWED, is now accepting grant applications from visual artists and nonfiction writers who live in Barkhamsted, Canaan, Colebrook, Norfolk, North Canaan and Winsted. The foundation name is an acronym for Artists and Writers Education and Development. Grants to be awarded in 2008 will range from […]

Library to Exhibit the Work Of Norfolk’s Ron Sloan

  By Robin Yuran During the month of March, the Norfolk Library is showcasing the artistic genius of Ron Sloan, who has been attacking the canvas with primary colors that are representative of his agonized view of the human condition since 1965. “I can feel the screams of everybody that have been hurt in this […]

Fiscal Year 2009-2010 town budget looks stable

2010-2011 not as predictable By Bridgette L. Rallo The numbers won’t be official until after the annual budget audit is released in January but, according to First Selectman Sue Dyer, Norfolk’s finances are stable despite unprecedented cuts in the state budget. Next year’s financial picture, though, may not be quite as rosy. “We’re still hanging. […]