2016 Curator’s Report
2016Exhibition
Hidden in Plain Sight: Artists, Artisans, and Craftsmen of Norfolk’s Golden Age of Architecture
Forty years ago, architectural critic and Norfolk summer resident Brendan Gill offered a significant reassessment of the town’s architectural heritage in a chapter of the Waldecker History of Norfolk 1900-1975. He included a list of “indispensable” late 19th and early 20th century landmarks of Norfolk’s “Golden Age of Architecture,” many of which were at that time in a state of neglect. This exhibition featured this remarkable group of public buildings commissioned by Norfolk’s civic-minded patrons in the period 1880 to 1930, especially the details of their stunning artistry and craftsmanship. Artists and artisans of the highest caliber such as Maitland Armstrong, Louis Comfort Tiffany, and Augustus Saint-Gaudens were commissioned to work here in stained glass and bronze. Craftsmen skilled in stone, wood, and terra cotta contributed important details.Brendan Gill concluded his chapter with this plea: Learn what is precious, and fight to preserve it! Forty years later, we are aware of the importance of historic preservation, and in the rear gallery the exhibition showcased the buildings of Norfolk’s Golden Age of Architecture that have been or are being lovingly restored to protect and preserve this extraordinary legacy.
Collections Management
In 2016, 641 catalog records were entered into the database, bringing the total number of catalog records to 15,150
Objects - 5994
Archives (document collections) - 208
Photographs - 6559
Library (books, magazines, newspapers) - 2389
Accessions 2016
Anderson, BruceLetters from Claude Kendall, 1969-72;206.7.2016
Photograph of Stoeckel dogs and greenhouse; 1878 letter to Alice Eldridge; 1832 letter from Sally to Nathaniel Stevens; The Norfolk Cook Book; LCUC Centennial Meeting at Whitehouse program, 1996; Sheet music “Evening”; Norfolk Home Missionary Society Musical Entertainment program, 1917; Curtiss Christmas card; Three Addresses (LCUC, 1902); Theodore Woolsey 1855 Sermon, inscribed Joseph Eldridge; Memorial program: Richard I. Barstow, 1999; Bessie, inscribed to Mrs. Elizabeth R. Anderson from her cousin Anna Battell, Norfolk, CT 1886
Andresen, JulieNewspaper clippings and photo of 50th Anniversary 1161.1.2016
Music Shed concert, 1956; pen and ink drawing of Music Shed
Andrus, Caroline and DyckScrapbook that belonged to William Sieller 519.2.2016
(1935-52); two family photographs
Benedict, Orson and DorisJohn V. Garrity & Sons 1959 calendar724.2.2016
Brown, DeborahKendall photographs: portraits of Edmund Brown, Jr.811.2.2016
Byrne, RichardCharles T. Williams’ derby hat381.25.2016
Currier, GreggSix postcards: railroad bridge, Welch fountain, Library, 793.5-6.2016
Catholic Church, Robbins School, Eldridge Gymnasium
The Stevens Family: Ancestral Genealogical Record (1896) by Nathaniel B. Stevens. Finial from Royal Arcanum. Photograph of Alfredo Taylor’s
World War II Memorial on Village Green
Harvill Estate, KeithNorfolk Drugstore signs372.4.2016
Maclean, VickyFour photographs of Wood Creek 1068.2.2016
Markey, RobinSignature quilt-top, 1849-1850, from cedar chest of1160.1.2016
Emilie and Jane Spaulding with many Norfolk signatures including Robbins Battell, Dec. 13, 1849; Irene Larned, Ellen Battell, Frederick E. Porter, Susan L. Mills, Eliza Butler, Christmas Eve, 1849.
Marolda, Ted and Sue AnnCT Arms Company revolver857.1.2016
Norfolk LibraryPal Kelemen, Baroque and Rococo in Latin America (1951) 79.72.2016
NVFDAssorted photographs, photo albums of 2002 Centennial 445.47.2016
Celebration, State of CT Official Citation (2015), Town of Norfolk Proclamation of July 6, 2002 as NVFD Day
O’Connor, RussellThree ledgers from the Norfolk Realty Company (1904-1967) 991.3.2016
NRC was a joint sock company incorporated in 1904 for the purpose of building the Royal Arcanum building and to acquire and sell other real estate. Ledgers contain list of subscribers, stock certificates and rents collected from holdings, 1934-1967
Peters, JoanneNFVD uniform pin, 19181165.1.2016
Rostad, TuriRoof Tile w/anthemion motif from Eldridge Gymnasium1019.1.2016
Sinclair, ErnieWe Aspired: The Last Innocent Americans by Pete Sinclair; 1157.1.2016
DVD: The Grand Rescue: A True Story of the 1967 Teton Rescuers
Tobias, Don and BarbaraThree wicker chairs from the Norfolk Inn1164.1.2016
Wabrek, SallyAn Account of the Pilgrimage to the Tomb of GeneralGrant 1162.1.2016
Webber, BarryPostcards: Elmore summer house (1931,1934), 501.9.2016
view of railroad station; Kendall photograph: fishing group; letter from William Welch to Providence Tool Co., 1862 re Ct Arms Co. gun barrels; magazine The American Home, Jan. 1937