First Thursdays: Fitchburg’s Monthly Celebration of Art, Community, and Local Businesses
Zoe Chrisostomides
Editor-In-Chief
Feb. 1 2024

Locals as well as visitors headed to downtown Fitchburg to take part in a monthly event that fills the city with culture, art, and a strong feeling of community. Known as “First Thursdays,” this lively event series occurs on the first Thursday of each month and features a dynamic mix of free Fitchburg Art Museum admission, attracting local businesses, interesting pop-ups in the downtown area, and the much-loved Fitchburg Farmers Market.

“First Thursdays mean a lot of fun for the public because we do farmers markets, sometimes alongside a few different vendors that are local. We get to sell and explain what we do at growing places, so we work with the Fitchburg Art Museum. We are growing places located in Leominster, and our role is making food equitable and sustainable to the public. We’re trying to build bridges with the communities by working with the farmers and branching that out to the community in different ways. We have farmers markets all through the month in different locations in different communities,” said Jessica Hanson, Market Coordinator of Fitchburg’s Farmers Market

First Thursdays are a community-building event that is organized by the Fitchburg Art Museum (FAM) in partnership with local businesses and craftsmen. The purpose of the event is to highlight the city’s rich cultural assets.

Membership and Events Assistant of the Fitchburg Art Museum, Caitlyn Falzone, states, “The Fitchburg Art Museum is always open to working with community partners. The Farmers Market concept is not a new one but we’ve partnered with growing places recently who livened it up a little bit. We love having people within the community come here, and free First Thursdays is a great opportunity to do so.”

One of the series’ highlights is the partnership between FAM and the Fitchburg Farmers Market. The Fitchburg Farmers Market, which is held at FAM on First Thursdays from November through June, provides visitors with a wide selection of locally grown fruit, handcrafted crafts, and handmade goods. This partnership demonstrates the shared goal of advancing local handmade goods, the farming industry, and community spirit. One of the vendors, Audrey Fox, attended Fitchburg’s First Thursdays. Audrey’s company, Maeberry Naturals, offers all natural home and body products.
“I’m here just trying to get my products out there. I’m a relatively new company, we’ve been in existence for a while but really just recently started doing more of the vendor events. We are actually in two stores now,” said Fox.

In Fitchburg, First Thursdays have grown to be cherished customs that symbolize the creative, collaborative, and community-focused nature of the city. Whether you’re an experienced art fanatic, a foodie seeking out tasty delights, or a shopper seeking unique finds, First Thursdays have something for everyone.