253 Farmacy Dispensary in Turners Falls MA

253 Farmacy, a farm and a shop at one address

Some dispensaries buy everything they sell. 253 Farmacy Dispensary in Turners Falls MA grows a lot of its own. The Turners Falls shop at 253 Millers Falls Road is a farm, a kitchen and a store all in one building, on the road between Turners Falls and Millers Falls in the town of Montague. The company calls its cannabis farm “on site” and its facility vertically integrated, which is a fancy way of saying the plants are grown, processed and sold under one roof.

If you live in Franklin County, or you are rolling down from Vermont or New Hampshire, here is what to know before you go.

What’s in a name

The name is a little puzzle, and the shop is happy to explain it. “253” is the street number on Millers Falls Road, where the company says it is putting down roots. Add the digits together and you get 10, so the company likes to call 253 “a Perfect 10.”

“Farmacy” blends two words, farm and pharmacy. The company describes its job as part farmer and, in a figurative sense, part pharmacist: grow a great plant, then help people use it thoughtfully and happily. It says it treats the plant with the highest respect.

From empty photo lab to dispensary

The building has a long local story. According to the Greenfield Recorder, 253 Millers Falls Road was once the photo lab of the Hallmark Institute of Photography, and it sat empty for about 10 years. An earlier plan to turn it into a medical dispensary in 2014 never got a license.

That changed in 2018. In March of that year, the Montague Planning Board unanimously approved the site plan after about two hours of public comment, and the crowd applauded. Town Administrator Steve Ellis called the project a “significant development for our community,” and Town Planner Walter Ramsey said, “Cultivation is a good, suitable use.” The company finalized its host agreement with Montague in April 2018.

Then came the hard work. The building was gutted to a shell and rebuilt, keeping only its footprint and skeleton. The finished building covers 33,000 square feet, and the retail space takes up about 3,000 of them. Co-founder Seth Rutherford, who grew up in Shutesbury, did the landscaping outside, and his cousin and co-founder Chris Gallant, a Nantucket woodworker and general contractor, designed the cabinetry inside. In a feature the company shared on its blog, Rutherford said the founders did the grinding, the painting and the rest of the grunt work themselves, and he is proud of it.

Open since August 2019

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission lists 253 Millers Falls Road as an active, licensed adult-use cannabis retailer, open since August 29, 2019. When the Recorder covered the opening that September, 253 Farmacy was only the second cannabis store in Franklin County, and the only one with cultivation and manufacturing on site. The same feature on the company blog says 253 Farmacy was one of the early license holders and the 25th dispensary to open in Massachusetts.

Farm to table, small-town style

That blog feature, first written for MJ Unpacked, describes 253 Farmacy as a farm-to-table operation rooted in small-town values. Growing indoors is tricky, Rutherford explained, because indoor growers cannot lean on many of the tricks outdoor farmers use against mold and bud rot. So the team keeps a very clean grow and holds each department to strict standards.

The company also tries to keep good cannabis within reach. Rutherford said it offers several price points without lowering quality, selling smaller “popcorn” buds and less showy concentrate at lower prices. His philosophy is easy to remember: “if you take care of the people around you, they take care of you.”

A store that feels like a lounge

When the shop opened, the Recorder described it as somewhere between a health food store and a smoke shop, with rolling papers, vaporizers and glass from local glassblowers on the shelves, and edibles kept in pharmacy-style fridges. You start in a waiting room with vintage issues of High Times and other memorabilia, and on busy days a receptionist buzzes you in so each customer gets real attention from the staff.

Rutherford wanted shoppers to look past the numbers on the label. “A lot of cannabis isn’t just the testing results. It’s the smell, it’s the look, it’s the color,” he told the Recorder. He also hoped to show people that “it’s not always the highest TAC (total available cannabinoid) that’s the best for you.”

Top marks from shoppers

People have noticed. In 2022, Leafly named 253 Farmacy the top-rated recreational dispensary in Massachusetts according to Leafly users, a list built from real reviews and data. Leafly wrote that “Anyone who is new to buying legal cannabis will appreciate 253 Farmacy’s knowledgeable and attentive staff.” One reviewer summed up the visit: “great location, large parking area, and nice building.”

Reviews on the store’s own Turners Falls page say the same thing. “Everyone is so nice and they have some pretty great products,” one shopper wrote, and another mentioned that the shop is welcoming to dogs.

Looking after the team and the town

The company says the trust of customers, employees and partners sits at the center of its mission, and it is owned and operated by Massachusetts locals. According to the blog feature, starting pay is well above minimum wage, staff turnover is low, and Gallant organizes monthly cookouts for the crew. The company’s license called for 150 hours of community service, and the team logged 200.

What’s on the menu

253 Farmacy carries flower, pre-rolls, vapes, concentrates, edibles, tinctures, topicals and CBD products, and its Turners Falls page says the shop is “best known for our pure and potent cannabis concentrates.” The company says it takes a full-spectrum approach rather than isolating single cannabinoids. Menus change, so check the online menu before you go.

Tips from the 253 Farmacy blog

The 253 Farmacy blog has some easy reads for curious shoppers.

Get to know terpenes. In its post on popular terpenes, the shop explains that terpenes are natural aromatic compounds in plants that shape flavor and smell, and cannabis has more than 100 of them. A few you may recognize from the kitchen:

Caryophyllene. Peppery and warm. “This aromatic chemical is also found in pepper and cinnamon,” the blog notes.
Linalool. The floral note best known from lavender.
Myrcene. A light, fragrant scent also found in mango, lemongrass, thyme and hops.
Pinene. Smells like pine, and turns up in basil and dill too.
Limonene. Bright citrus, found in fruit rinds, rosemary and peppermint.

Next time you shop, ask a budtender which aromas stand out in a strain, then trust your nose.

Different ways, different timing. Another post looks at edibles, vapes, concentrates and smoking. Edibles build slowly and last longer, concentrates come on fast, and smoking a joint, pipe or bong works about the same way. The blog says THC level, strain, amount and your own tolerance matter more than the method. Its best advice for edibles: “It’s important to wait the direct time before consuming more!”

Order online, pick up in store

You can browse the online menu and place an order for pickup at the dispensary. No appointment is needed, so walking in works too. Prices on the online menu do not include tax.

A sister shop in Amherst

253 Farmacy also runs a store at 328 College Street in Amherst, open daily from 10am to 8pm. Turners Falls is the original, with the farm under the same roof.

Plan your visit

Address. 253 Millers Falls Road, Turners Falls (Montague), MA 01376, near the Turners Falls Airport.

Hours. Monday through Saturday, 9am to 8pm. Sunday, 10am to 7pm. Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Phone. (413) 863-5670.

Parking. Parking is on site, and no appointment is needed.

Paying. Cash or debit. Debit cards carry a $3.50 service fee, and there are two ATMs on site.

Access. The store is wheelchair accessible.

Adults 21+. 253 Farmacy is adult-use only. Bring a valid, government-issued ID such as a driver’s license, passport, state ID card or military ID. Temporary or expired IDs are not accepted.

Massachusetts cannabis basics

Here are the state rules from the Cannabis Control Commission:

Age. 21 or older, with a government-issued ID for every retail purchase.
Carrying. Up to two ounces in public.
At home. Up to 10 ounces, and anything over two ounces must be locked up.
Where to use it. Not in public places and not on federal land.
In the car. No open containers in the passenger area. Use a closed container in the trunk or a locked glove compartment, and never drive under the influence.
State lines. It is illegal to take cannabis out of Massachusetts, and it cannot be mailed. Turners Falls is less than 15 miles from both Vermont and New Hampshire, so keep your purchase on this side of the line.

Your first visit, step by step

Check the online menu. See what is in stock before you drive over.
Order ahead or walk in. No appointment is needed.
Bring your ID and payment. A valid, unexpired ID, plus cash or debit.
Ask about the farm. Find out what was grown right in the building.
Follow your nose. Use the terpene tips and let the budtenders guide you.

Make a day of it in Montague and Turners Falls

Montague is a Franklin County town of 8,580 people (2020 census), with the Connecticut River on its western edge and the Millers River draining through it. The area was once known as Peskeompskut and was home to the Pocomtuc people. Europeans first settled here in 1715, and the town was incorporated in 1754. Montague is really a family of villages: Montague Center, Montague City, Turners Falls, Millers Falls and Lake Pleasant, a former spiritualist campground.

Turners Falls is the biggest of them, with 4,512 people in 2020 and more than half the town’s population. It was founded in 1868 as a planned industrial village under Alvah Crocker of Fitchburg, with a dam and canal on the Connecticut River supplying cheap water power to the mills. The central village is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

There is plenty to see. Visit the Great Falls Discovery Center, catch a show at the Shea Theater, walk or bike the Canalside Rail Trail, and take in the river from the Gill-Montague Bridge. Back roads lead to the Old Red Bridge and the Montague Center Historic District. In October, keep an eye out for Pumpkinfest, first held in Turners Falls in 2010. Routes 2, 47 and 63 all pass through town, so 253 Farmacy is an easy stop on a drive through the valley.

Why 253 Farmacy is worth the stop

A rebuilt photo lab, a farm under the same roof, a team that did the grunt work itself and a staff that shoppers rank among the best in the state: 253 Farmacy is a true Franklin County original. Swing by Millers Falls Road and see why the number adds up to a perfect 10.

Cannabis is for adults 21 and over. Please consume responsibly.