Norfolk Public Library - Norfolk CT
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nomadwillie
N 41° 59.364 W 073° 11.935
18T E 649188 N 4650168
Norfolk Public Library is located at 9 Greenwoods Rd E in Norfolk Twn, CT 06058
Waymark Code: WM7JT3
Location: Connecticut, United States
Date Posted: 11/01/2009
Views: 5
Miss Isabella Eldridge established the Norfolk Library as a memorial to her parents, The Reverend Joseph and Sarah Battell Eldridge, and presented it to the town of Norfolk in 1889. Her hope was that it would be a meeting ground for the community rather than just an institution and it has maintained the character she gave it through all the years of its existence. It serves not only as a storehouse of reading for instruction and pleasure, but also as a meeting site for various clubs and groups.
Mr. George Keller of Hartford was the architect for the building which first opened on March 6, 1889. At the time it was built, the structure went no farther than the north-south corridor of alcoves. The Great Hall, additional stacks, and the back alcove, also designed by Keller, were added in 1911, again the gift of Isabella Eldridge.
The Smith Children's Room opened in 1985. Its construction was made possible through the generous donations of Abel I. Smith and many members of the Norfolk community. Alec Frost, architect, designed the addition to be in keeping with the original structure. A most serendipitous event was the discovery, by members of the building committee, that stone from the quarry which provided the material for the original building was available. It was given to the Library by the town of East Longmeadow, Massachusetts.
Architectural highlights include the exterior, made of Longmeadow stone on the first floor, and fish scale tile shingles on the second floor. The original fluted Spanish tile roof, which had suffered the ravages of frost and fallen branches, has been replaced by more mundane asphalt shingles. Albert Entress of Hartford sculptureed the gargoyle in the shape of an owl which adorns the front porch, as well as another owl standing over the fireplace in the Great Hall holding a book bearing the library's motto "Inter Folia Fructus."
The stained glass windows in the Harden Reference room and the Great Hall were made by Messrs. Maitland Armstrong & Co., of New York City. The portrait of the library's founder, Miss Isabella Eldridge, was painted by Mrs. Ellen Emmett Rand. A plaque depicting Robert Louis Stevenson was designed by Homer St. Gaudens and presented by him to Miss Isabella on the twentieth anniversary of the founding of the library. The plaque hanging upstairs over the back alcove was created by Tonell. Called "The War of Democracy," it was made to welcome the French and British Commissions to New York City and was given to the library by Mrs. D. H. Flagg.
In keeping with Miss Eldridge's wish that the library serve as a cultural meeting spot of Norfolk, the trustees made provision for the formation of the Norfolk Library Associates in 1974. This devoted and invaluable group sponsors monthly art exhibits by local artists, an annual book-sale, and several concerts a year.
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