The year ended with real estate sales continuing to boom in Litchfield County.
Real estate agents had their hands full, beginning in spring, with city residents urgently seeking to buy or rent properties up here, hoping to protect themselves and their families from the spread of COVID-19.
Somehow it all worked out, with sellers saying they were nervous about strangers coming to tour their for-sale properties — and with a notably high number of buyers agreeing to purchase properties that they had never seen in person.
Market statistics shared by William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty showed that even in November, when it seemed like there was nothing left to sell in the Northwest Corner, sales were up 71% over the previous year (with 171 single-family home sales).
In 2020 overall, sales were up 47% over 2019 in all towns except North Canaan.
Obeying the laws of supply and demand, the prices of houses also increased, by an estimate 32% over 2019. In a 19 town section of Litchfield County, the sale of houses in the $2 to $4 million price range tripled, with 36 sales in 2020. Sales in the 19 towns in the “over $1 million range” increased by a 174%. In November alone there were 19 sales of “million dollar” homes, triple what was sold in the same month in 2019.
The sudden surge in newcomers of course had an impact on life in the Northwest Corner.
One change that was commented on by longtime residents: The combination of COVID-19 and the new residents led to a vast increase in the number of people taking daily walks along main roads and back roads. Much to the chagrin of drivers, many of the pedestrians wore dark clothing and often walked close to the center of the road; duos and trios would often spread out across the roadway, walking side by side, even around blind curves.
A positive of the influx of newcomers was increased income for several local businesses. Some restaurants did very well this year despite COVID-19, with outdoor dining and take-out orders. And area grocery stores reported that they saw a dramatic increase in sales. Although stores became more crowded, on average, it was nice to see the businesses doing well — two stores were even able to invest in new cold cases for meats, vegetables and frozen food.
For an article on how the real estate surge impacted the region’s schools, see the story on Page A1.
Natalia Zukerman
On March 29, writer, producer and director Tammy Denease will embody the life and story of Elizabeth Freeman, widely known as Mumbet, in two performances at the Scoville Library in Salisbury. Presented by Scoville Library and the Salisbury Association Historical Society, the performance is part of Salisbury READS, a community-wide engagement with literature and civic dialogue.
Mumbet was the first enslaved woman in Massachusetts to sue successfully for her freedom in 1781. Her victory helped lay the legal groundwork for the abolition of slavery in the state just two years later. In bringing Mumbet’s story to life, Denease does more than reenact history.
“I have been performing Mumbet for over 15 years now,” she said. What continues to resonate is “her self-awareness and self-worth even though she was enslaved. Her legacy of self-care and the ability to take care of others. That has not changed over time.”
Denease’s one-woman performance, “One Minute a Free Woman,” is part of her “Hidden Women” series, which centers figures too often pushed to the margins of historical memory. Drawing upon her own lineage and storytelling traditions passed down from her great-grandmother, a formerly enslaved woman, Denease creates work that bridges personal inheritance and collective history. Her background as a museum educator and interpretive guide shapes this approach.
“Being an interpretive educator helps me put the humanity back into history that has been removed when telling the stories,” she said.
The 2 p.m. program welcomes school-age audiences and families, while a 4 p.m. performance invites adults into a deeper and more intense exploration of Mumbet’s life.
“The format of the show will only change in the way I deliver the story,” Denease explained. “It will be more intense and in detail for the adults, less intense for the kids. However, it will not be watered down.”
For young people, Denease hopes the performance ignites curiosity and critical thought. “I hope school-age audiences’ imaginations are activated to want to know more and to never stop asking questions.” Adults, she said, are invited into a deeper investigation. “I hope for my adult audience that they will question what they were taught and see history through a different lens.”
That spirit of inquiry lies at the heart of Salisbury READS. “Literature and live performances go hand in hand,” Denease said. “Reading activates the imagination; living history helps that activated mind to make historical connections and keep the humanity and dignity in place where it was never given or taken away.”
Ultimately, the performance asks audiences to treat history not as distant fact but as shared responsibility. “I hope the audience will continue to question why knowing accurate and complete history is so important,” Denease said. “To understand that not knowing the whole story hurts everyone.”
To register for the event, visit scovillelibrary.org
Natalia Zukerman
On Saturday, March 28, Troutbeck in Amenia will host “An Acoustic Evening with Buddy Wakefield and Holly Miranda,” bringing together two artists who carefully employ language — to tell stories, to shape songs and to search for truth.
The two artists met last August at the memorial service for their dear friend, poet Andrea Gibson.
“We kept bumping into each other in those really funny, awkward, weird moments that can happen at a funeral,” said Miranda. “We knew we really liked each other and wanted to spend some more time together.”
That connection continued over the winter when Miranda enrolled in one of Wakefield’s online poetry courses.
“I just thought maybe I should do something totally out of my comfort zone to kick-start some creative flow,” she explained. The class introduced her to a structured prompt and feedback process which, in the end, sparked new material. “I’m not a poet,” said Miranda. “And I’m definitely not a student,” she continued, laughing, making reference to herself as a high school dropout. “So, this was a new process for me. And I really liked it.”
Born in Detroit, Miranda burst onto the Brooklyn music scene in the late ’90s and has since collaborated with a wide constellation of artists from Lou Reed to Karen O, Leslie Gore and Tegan and Sara. In 2021, she co-founded Eye Knee Records with Elissa Young and Ambrosia Parsley to support independent artists. She is currently part of a team developing a 250-capacity music venue in Woodstock, Calliope, named for the Greek muse who presides over eloquence and epic poetry.
“There’s a lot of small-town bureaucracy we’re still wading through,” said Miranda, estimating it’ll be another 18 months or so before the venue opens its doors.
Wakefield, a three-time Individual World Poetry Slam champion now based in Portugal, said this event came together after an invitation from Troutbeck’s director of culture and commerce, Sascha Lewis.
“Everything he’s invited me to in the past has been awesome, so I knew this would be too. And then, of course, there’s Holly.”
The performance will take place in the ballroom, the perfect setting to foster intimacy and a close connection to the audience. Wakefield, whose performances blend theater, poetry, humor and personal narrative, said he adjusts each set to fit the space he’s in.
“I definitely adapt in a choose your own adventure way,” he said.
Over more than two decades of relentless touring — from grand urban stages to unexpected corners of the world — Wakefield has helped expand spoken word beyond readings into emotionally dynamic live performance.
It’s fitting as well that this pairing unfolds at a place steeped in creative history. The evening, which begins at 5 p.m., will be a continuation of that tradition: art not as spectacle, but as exchange.
In a time when so much competes for our dwindling attention, this performance will offer something rare: the chance to sit quietly in a beautiful room while two singular artists remind us how powerful unamplified truth can be.
Guests are invited to stay for dinner. Reservations are encouraged. Tickets at troutbeck.com
Lakeville Journal
Historian Russell Shorto joins local educators Peter Vermilyea and Rhonan Mokriski for a conversation about Shorto’s “Revolution Song” on March 27 at the Salisbury Forum, marking Salisbury’s commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. at Housatonic Valley Regional High School. Register at salisburyforum.org
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Patrick L. Sullivan
Bill Beebe, left and Denny Jacobs hard at work making maple syrup at Whiting Brook Farm.
FALLS VILLAGE — Denny Jacobs dipped a metal spoon into boiling maple sap that was slowly turning into maple syrup.
He held the spoon up horizontally and watched as the thick liquid dribbled off.
“It’s not done until the last drop stays on the spoon,” he said. “That’s what the old-timers told us.”
The Jacobs family — Denny, Judy and their son Dave — along with Bill Beebe and a couple of dogs, were busy Saturday morning, March 21, at their Whiting Brook Farm on Undermountain Road maple syrup operation.
Judy Jacobs had a covered skillet perched on the side of the evaporator. In it were hot dogs and kielbasa, cut in slices and simmering in maple sap.
The Jacobs operation was one of six Falls Village sugaring concerns participating in a statewide maple syrup showcase weekend, with visitors traveling between farms to see each operation in action.
Matt Gallagher and his son Connor were boiling away at a much smaller apparatus at the Gallagher home, also known as Acer Creek Farm, on Canaan Mountain Road.
Matt Gallagher said he had one big tank just off Canaan Mountain Road which collected sap via tubes from 24 taps, plus another 73 taps and buckets on trees.
Jody and Jean Bronson, ofUndermountain Road, also had a smaller system running and a steady stream of visitors.
Bronson said they prefer a more robust, darker syrup than the amber colored variety that is the unofficial standard, and Jean Bronson had samples ready for visitors.
The amount of sap needed to produce syrup varied considerably. Denny Jacobs said the Whiting Brook Farm ratio was between 50 and 55 gallons of sap to one gallon of syrup. Bronson and Gallagher had 35-to-1 and 30-to-1, respectively.
Bronson, a retired forester, said altitude and whether trees are wild or farmed both make a difference.
Back at Whiting Brook, Denny Jacobs and Beebe, watching the hydrometer and the spoon, decided it was time for a “draw.” A clean five-gallon bucket was positioned under the tap, and the hot, dark syrup filled the container.
Then it was time for the initial filtering.
Jacobs was proud of his innovative filter mechanism. A conical filter made of a thick, felt-like material was suspended between the legs of an upside-down kitchen stool, with another five-gallon bucket beneath.
Jacobs simply poured the hot syrup out of the first bucket into the filter. The syrup slowly seeped through. “We finish it on the stove at home,” said Judy Jacobs.
Also participating in the maple weekend were Lou Timolat and Eric Carlson at Saw Mill Syrup on Route 7, Kent Allyn on Music Mountain Road, and Adamah Farm on Johnson Road, each operating from their own sugarhouse or farm.
The Falls Village maple syrup makers are hosting an event on the town Green on Saturday, April 25, co-sponsored by the town’s Recreation Commission. There will be demonstrations and, of course, maple syrup for sale.
Lakeville Journal
FALLS VILLAGE — Housatonic Valley Regional High School recognized its student-athletes for the 2025–26 winter season during an awards ceremony held Thursday, March 12. The following students were honored:
Girls Basketball
MVP: Olivia Brooks
MIP: Carmela Egan
JV MIP: Olivia Simonds/Keely Malone
Sportsmanship: Maddy Johnson
Stevenson: Grace Graney
Tyburski: Aubrey Funk
Heart & Hustle Award: Victoria Brooks
Boys Basketball
MVP: Anthony Foley
MIP: Tyler Roberts
Sportsmanship: Simon Markow
Tyburski: Jaxon Visockis
JV MIP: Peyton Bushnell
Stevenson: Jasper Oyanadel
Swimming
MVP : Anna Gillette
MIP: Paige Beeman
Sportsmanship: Lydia Fleming
Tyburski: Phoebe Conklin/Cullen Bonis
Alpine Ski
MVP: Winter Cheney
MIP: Danny Lesch
JV MIP: Logan Dolan
Sportsmanship: Jonas Johnson
Stevenson: Austin Ward
Tyburski: Donald Polk III
Four-Year Senior Awards
Anna Gillette (Swim), Wesley Allyn (Basketball), Anthony Foley (Basketball), Anthony Labbadia (Basketball), Owen Riemer (Basketball), Olivia Brooks (Basketball), Maddy Johnson (Basketball), Nick Crodelle (Basketball), and Simon Markow (Basketball).
Berkshire League Scholar Athletes
Olivia Brooks (Basketball), Anna Gillette (Swim), Silas Tripp (Indoor Track), Adelyn Diorio (Swim), Daniel Lesch (Alpine Ski), Meadow Moerschell (Swim), Ishann Tantri (Alpine Ski), Ivy Zheng (Swim), Mia Belter (Swim), Kate Money (Swim), Victoria Brooks (Basketball), Katie Crane (Swim), Madison Graney (Basketball), Hannah Johnson (Basketball), Maddy Johnson (Basketball), Simon Markow (Basketball), Madison Melino (Alpine Ski), Wyatt Bayer (Basketball), Carmela Egan (Basketball), Lydia Fleming (Swim), Grace Graney (Basketball), Jonas Johnson (Alpine Ski), Logan Bronson (Alpine Ski), Caitlin Devino (Cheer), Logan Miller (Ice Hockey), and Vilija Salazar (Cheer).
Key: MVP is most valuable player; MIP is most improved player; Stevenson is the junior varsity sportsmanship award; Tybruski is awarded to outstanding freshmen.
Patrick L. Sullivan
"Misty Morning"
SALISBURY — Steven Goldberg likes to wander New York City with a camera in hand — and sometimes, that curiosity leads to unexpected moments of humor.
One such moment is captured in his photograph “Met Museum,” which shows a young man absorbed in his laptop outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art, seemingly unaware of a nearby statue of a nude woman that appears to be watching him.
The image is part of the Housatonic Camera Club’s current exhibition, “What Do You See?”
The show opened with a reception Thursday, March 19, at the Scoville Memorial Library and will remain on display through April 19.
Each photograph in the exhibit is accompanied by a brief written reflection from the artist.
In his description of “Met Museum,” Goldberg wrote: “I often find humor in the interaction of traditional art and the activity around it. Here, the sculpted woman seems to be looking down at the young man working on his computer, who is oblivious to the ancient statue right next to him.”
Another featured work, “Misty Morning” by Lazlo Gyorsok of Cornwall, offers a quieter, contemplative scene — a boathouse beside a still lake, softened by mist.
“A small white boathouse sits quietly at the edge of a still lake, practically veiled by mist that softens the surrounding trees and shoreline,” Gyorsok wrote. “Its reflection, along with the tall tree beside it and a docked canoe, mirrors almost perfectly in the calm water, creating a serene and symmetrical scene.”
Other photographers featured in the show include Tom Blagden, Dawn Dingee, Verne Henshall, Joan Hinchman, Heidi M. Hoeller, Jack Kearney, Randy McKee, G.A. Mudge, Pamela Peeters, Paul Serbaniewicz, Bert Schmitz and Brian Wilcox.
Goldberg has homes in Pine Plains and Pittsford, New York.
The Housatonic Camera Club, founded in 1956 by Edward Hutchinson of Sharon, draws members from across the Connecticut–New York–Massachusetts tri-state area. The club is currently led by president Dawn Dingee of Dover Plains, New York.
Members regularly participate in competitions hosted by the New England Camera Club and the Photographic Society of America, and exhibit their work three times each year.
The group meets on the third Tuesday of each month from September through June at Noble Horizons in Salisbury. For more information, visit www.housatoniccameraclub.com.
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