LUDLOW, Mass. - The Ludlow 250^th committee is kicking off the milestone year in large fashion with the towns First Night Celebration.

"Today, we're at Ludlow High School," said Ludlow 250^th celebration committee chairwoman, Linda Collette. "And we've got 50 crafters here. We've got food vendors, train rides and our buddies here."

People at Saturday's event enjoyed several activities including gift shopping, arts and crafts and a historical presentation on the town's history.

People wanting to explore Ludlow can also take a ride on the Roaming Railroad.

Spectrum News spoke to several Western Massachusetts residents who took the afternoon to enjoy all the town has to offer.

"The jumbo pickles!" said April Clark. "But no, we've been planning on coming for a couple of weeks. We usually go to all of the little Ludlow stuff. We love being here in town. But we drove by and somebody needs a jumbo pickle."

"We've had a great time," said Karianne Kulig. "We rode the train three times. We've played some games. I'm having a beer from Vanished Valley Brewing, a local company. I've had a pickle and my nephews had hot dogs, so yeah, so far so good."

Collette said Ludlow means a lot to its community and they hope to celebrate it all year long.

"We've been planning this for a little over three years now," Collette said. "And we're just so excited to celebrate, not only with our townspeople, but our surrounding area too. It means a lot to us to really just kick back and celebrate and have fun with each other."

"It means a lot," said Hannah Worpek. "It's a great community, a lot of good people. It's really nice and I appreciate it."

Collette said people can look forward to more events starting in the spring, with a golf tournament and town picnic.