Buckland
The Town of Buckland, Massachusetts is a small, rural, predominately agricultural community with a population of approximately 2,000 people. The main employer in Buckland is the Mohawk Trail Regional School. Buckland shares a downtown business district, known as Shelburne Falls, with the Town of Shelburne. The Route 112 corridor bisects the town and is a scenic highway consisting of a number of small farms and open space. Originally part of the towns of Charlemont and Ashfield, Buckland’s first settlers arrived in 1742. By 1779, the residents of what is now Buckland found it inconvenient and sometimes dangerous to cross the Deerfield River to attend church, school and town functions in Charlemont and surrounding towns, so they petitioned the General Court for incorporation. The Town of Buckland was incorporated April 14, 1779.
Buckland is located in West Franklin County and lies in a valley with beautiful hills surrounding it: Walnut Hill, Drank Hill, Snow Mountain to the west and Mary Lyon Hill and Moonshine Hill to the east. The town is South of Route 2 and Route 112 is the major through road.
The Buckland Town Hall is located in Shelburne Falls, a village composed of sections of Buckland and
Shelburne, connected by the Iron Bridge and the world famous Bridge of Flowers, over the Deerfield River. Learn more about the Village of Shelburne Falls at ShelburneFalls.com.
Many people refer to the area of Buckland at the top of Upper St as Upper Buckland. Set a few miles down the road from Shelburne Falls, this part of town is very quaint and is the location of the Buckland Public Library, the Mary Lyon Church, and Bird’s Nest Bed and Breakfast.
On the "Bucklandside" of Shelburne Falls you will find McCusker’s Market, a natural foods store that is part of Franklin Community Co-op, and two popular restaurants, both offering views of the Deerfield River: The Blue Rock Restaurant and Bar and The West End Pub. Those with a sweet tooth will love Mo's Fudge Factor, a gourmet fudge, candy, and ice cream shop. For a quick and reasonably-priced meal, Buckland Pizza House serves pizzas and sandwiches. There is also Pondside Pizza which serves thin crust pizza that is excellent.
Buckland has several shops and galleries that promote the arts and culture in Franklin County.
Nancy L. Dole Books & Ephemera is a small bookstore, owned and operated by Nancy Dole herself. Ann Brauer has her own Quilt Studio overlooking the Deerfield River, where she receives a lot of her inspiration for her quilts. The Art Garden is a community supported art-making place, which runs programs like ARTeens and events like the Hill-town Draw Around. The Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum shares the building with the Art Garden and is centered around a restored 1896 trolley that ran from Shelburne Falls to Colrain City. Finally, Salmon Falls Gallery is 3,400 square feet of space with over 100 artists' works, including planets and glass blown by Josh Simpson.
Established in 1837, Lamson and Goodnow is the oldest cutlery manufacturer in the United States. Their knives and kitchen tools are masterfully created to offer an unrivaled, professional-quality product to expect chefs and home culinary enthusiasts alike. Their Factory Outlet is located next to Lamson's original factory which offers their signature cutlery, kitchen tools, BBQ accessories and so much more at discounted prices.
Every year on the Second Saturday in August, the Bridge of Flowers Road Race takes place in the village of Shelburne Falls, with a large part of the course running through Buckland. Over 1,000 runners come out to compete in one of the toughest races in New England, mainly due to the long stretch up Crittenden Hill.
.jpg)
The following week, on the Third Sunday in August, is the Iron Bridge Dinner. A long table is set across the 1890 Iron Bridge and 400 people sit down together for dinner to celebrate the partnership between the towns of Shelburne and Buckland.
