All photos courtesy of Francesca Rayo.
The trip started as we gathered around the entrance to the Brooks House. I had signed up a week earlier with Brooks House Congress, and the anticipation was contagious. It was Lancaster’s first First Friday of the school year—and my first First Friday ever.
First Friday is one of Lancaster’s signature monthly events, when downtown shops and markets stay open late, vendors lower their prices, and local businesses hand out treats (Madcap & Company’s cake was a favorite). The streets are filled with artists performing, from playing the harmonic to their acoustic guitars, families wandering, and college students enjoying the evening. To our luck, this one also featured the Print Crawl, where visitors collect prints from local shops all around downtown Lancaster.
A local shop at the garage sale, set up right beside the first Print Crawl stop.
On the walk downtown, I imagined bands performing around Central Market, artsy entrepreneurs selling crochet pieces and thrifted cardigans, and Lancaster’s vibrant community in action. The reality wasn’t far off—just a little quieter than I had pictured.
As we arrived downtown, Madcap & Company greeted us with a performance and vanilla cake. Of course, we decided to go into the lively store—sweetened further by a 10% discount—and walked out with a new hat and a plant. Afterwards, just a few steps brought us to the Public Library, where food stands, ice cream trucks, and even salsa lessons at the train station filled the streets. Curious about where the crowd was heading, we followed along and stumbled into a charming little garage sale, packed with local shops selling art, clothes, and accessories. Just there, we came across the first stop of the Print Crawl—a long line gathered in front of an old printing press, a machine that fit perfectly with Lancaster’s historic character.
An artist performs for F&M students outside Madcap & Company.
We kept walking and came across a few more Print Crawl stops, including one at Foxduck, one of Lancaster’s staple local shops, where the line stretched out the street. After walking for around two or so hours, we headed back to campus, but first decided to make a stop at Thai Café for Boba.
One of the Print Crawl stops at Foxduck, a staple shop in Lancaster.
While the evening was a pleasant start to the school year and the month, the experience felt a little underwhelming. We missed a few highlights, like grabbing posters at the Print Crawl or visiting Building Character, an F&M favorite, and the event might have felt fuller with more live music. Still, the energy downtown was undeniable, and the community clearly enjoyed the evening as much as we did. Next time, we’ll take better notes, grab a plant, and be sure to stop by Building Character!
First-year Francesca Rayo is a contributing writer for The College Reporter. Her email is frayogue@fandm.edu.