• Inside the Yale Norfolk Summer School of Art

    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 […]

  • Trio Revives Local Farmers Market

    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 […]

  • Tracing the Dudley Legacy

    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 […]

  • Cultivars, Nativars and Natives: The Lowdown

    by Susannah Wood It’s May and gardening is in full swing. At nurseries and on gardening sites, beginners and enthusiasts often encounter plants labelled “cultivar” or “nativar,” as well as “native.” What is the difference between a cultivar and a nativar? If someone wants to support local ecosystems and biological diversity, are nativars a good […]

  • Noteworthy Natives: Arrowwood Viburnum

    By Jill Chase For some, a mass of viburnums in bloom on the woodlands edge rivals the beauty of any formal garden around. The fresh white flowers on green foliage let you know that the spring garden season is well and truly on. There are several good varieties of viburnum—some produce blooms like snowballs, while […]

  • A Town Hall Treat for Pollinators

    The Norfolk Nature Alliance sponsored a student native plant garden project at Town Hall. The Northwestern Regional 7 Agricultural Education Program/FFA arrived on a sunny Sunday to install the donated native shrubs and perennials.

  • Birds Now

    A view on the prose and poetry of spring By Cheryl Heller As I write, the red-winged blackbirds are partying outside my window. Goldfinches, in their bright almost-summer feathers, make yellow polkadots in the dogwood that will flower any day. The phoebe (or her daughter) who has nested on our hanging porch light for the […]

  • Happiness Is …

    Smiles and squeals greeted “Farmer John” Coston as he surprised the Merrymakers group of kindergarten and first-graders with a lamb visit at the Norfolk Library’s after-school program on March 23. Cuties and lambs—need we say more?

  • Greenwoods Puppet Festival Returns to Norfolk Library

    By Bina ThomsonThe Greenwoods Puppet Festival returns to Norfolk for a third exciting showcase of puppet magic. Children’s Librarian and Event Coordinator Eileen Fitzgibbons, who has coordinated the previous two festivals, is busy fine-tuning this year’s offerings. In addition to a full day of performances, a puppetry workshop for adults will also be offered. Festivities […]

  • Botelle Beat

    Power Goals and WIN Time Personalize Learning at Botelle By Lauren Valentino One of Botelle School’s SOAR expectations is to Achieve Your Goals. We believe that when students know their goals—what they are learning, why and what success looks like—they are more engaged and motivated. They are partners in the learning process and own their […]

  • Courtney Maum’s Comedic Take on Capitalism

    On June 2nd, Norfolk author Courtney Maum launches her new novel, “ALAN OPTS OUT” (Little Brown) at the Norfolk Library in conversation with WAMC radio’s Sarah LaDuke. The book is a comedy about an ad exec who bombs the biggest pitch of his career and decides to move into a backyard playhouse, opt out of […]

  • “You Shall Not Pass!”

    Gandalf and the state Department of Transportation have spoken. Mountain Road at Westside Road is now closed through November for the Spaulding Brook bridge replacement project. Traffic is being detoured off Route 44 via Westside Road. Cars can still reach the ball fields along the short stretch of Mountain Road.

Articles

Inside the Yale Norfolk Summer School of Art

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 […]

Education With a Wink: Norfolk Sewer’s Posts Find Their Audience

Crew crafts cinematic wastewater must-reads By the Norfolk Sewer District Every town has its traditions. Some have parades. Some have festivals. Here in Norfolk, we have … wastewater updates on Facebook. This is not a typo or glitch. This is a fully committed, once-a-week situation. If you’ve ever opened the Norfolk Sewer District Facebook page […]

A Gathering

Poetry and Prose Bloom on the Porch By Nels White In 2015, a group from the United Church of Christ and the Norfolk community started getting together regularly to practice their writing skills and to share their inspirations. They called themselves the “Writer’s Group.” The late Eve Thew was an originator of the group, and […]

Passing the Torch

Volunteers Key to Festival Connections By Jen Pfaltz Volunteers at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival will see a new face in a key role this season. After seven years as the Norfolk Local Coordinator of Volunteers, Tom Hodgkin is stepping aside and passing the torch to your correspondent, Jen Pfaltz. During his tenure, Hodgkin focused […]

March First Responder Data

Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department Norfolk Lions Club Ambulance

Norfolk’s Trash Dilemma

Sate decision leaves towns scrambling for options By Joe Kelly Norfolk prides itself on being pristine—“unspoiled” is the descriptor used on the town’s website. But that doesn’t stop the town from producing plenty of trash. Residents deposit 750 to 800 tons of household waste at the transfer station on Route 44 every year—more than 900 […]

VIEW FROM THE GREEN

Building a Budget By Avice Meehan For the past month, Norfolk’s three selectmen have been meeting for two hours at time to hash out the budget for the upcoming fiscal year. The special meetings—officially posted and open to the public—offer a window into the decisions large and small that shape the town’s spending priorities. The meetings […]

Earth Day Abundance Comes to Norfolk

By Avice Meehan With its abundance of natural resources and environmentally-oriented residents, Norfolk will provide numerous opportunities to appreciate the natural world both before, during and after the official observance of Earth Day on April 22. Think native shrubs, making tea for the garden, a walk among spring ephemerals and a playful opportunity to transform […]

NOTES FROM A FRENCH KITCHEN

Spring Stirs Green Market Memories By Marie-Christine Perry Growing up as I did in a family of nine, with seven food-loving children and a mother who was a delightful cook, meal preparation was joyful, sometimes simple and sometimes complex—particularly when a new recipe was tried. It all started with gathering ingredients. Whether at home—which in […]

A Fresh Take at Kelly’s Kitchen

By Andra Moss Hungry Norfolk residents looking for a ready-made meal and a scenic drive can find both when heading to Kelly’s Kitchen Take 2 at 320 Colebrook River Road in Colebrook. The cozy take-away spot is a reboot by Kelly and Bob McCarthy of their Winsted eatery, Kelly’s Kitchen, which they closed in 2019. […]

Expansion at Norbrook Farm Brewery Offers Rustic Elegance

Norfolk memories preserved in plain sight By Colleen Gundlach Norbrook Farm Brewery has long been noted for its welcoming atmosphere, specialty brews and unmatched outdoor amenities. But anyone who hasn’t been to Norbrook recently has a pleasant surprise in store. The brewery, located on the Norfolk/Colebrook town line, has expanded its footprint to include a […]

Moana Sails into Norfolk

An intrepid group of students drawn from Norfolk and Colebrook are busy rehearsing for this year’s school musical “Moana Jr.” at Botelle Elementary School. Organized by the Botelle PTO, performances will be held in the Hall of Flags on Friday, May 1, at 5:30 p.m. and Saturday, May 2, at 2 p.m. Based on the […]