MANCHESTER, NH – March 28 saw the return of the Queen City Black Market, an artist and makers market for alternative and gothic creatives and shoppers alike, back and bigger than ever. Having vastly outperformed expectations and the previous venue’s capacity in its initial iteration, Queen City Black Market now finds a suitable home within the mysterious halls of Elm Street’s New Hampshire Masonic Center; a building oozing elusivity with its nondescript exterior and storied esoteric history. Spread across two full floors, vendors from all across New England filled each nook and cranny of the Mason’s historic halls to share their talents and wares with the public, underscored by a series of displays of local talent, including electronic and rap music performances, comedy, and even a local drag show. The event concluded with its own official afterparty held after dusk just down the street at the Shaskeen Pub; a hardcore punk concert supporting more local musicians in collaboration with Manchester music scene mainstay Kinetic City Events.
Heralding nearly 2,000 attendees over the course of the day, the market drew a great expanse of interest in shoppers and curious minds of all ages and walks of life, with its highly variegated crop of unique vendors. Attractions included several displays of oddities both large and small and potentially haunted antiquities galore; including a series of bone art pieces and jewelry by Osteal Blossoms. Many handiwork craftworkers, including leatherwork and woodburning, also found a home within the whimsical and magical subsect of the occult audience; with a great number of vendors offering witch-themed wares and even tarot readings. The market holds space for pen and paper artists as well, offering adorable on-the-spot caricatures from chibi artist Varicatures and featuring prints and zines from local artist (and Ink Link Correspondent) Lizardthing. Another prominent zine and visual artist vendor was local artist Landry Sesame, coordinator of the Luna Moth Zine Fest; a festival celebrating and sharing the work of local artist making handmade miniature magazines colloquially known as ‘zines’, coming to Manchester on April 18th from 11a.m.-4 p.m. at the YWCA.
How About that Masonic Temple
The venue for the event, a prominent but peculiar beige stonework building towering next to another local institution, Pappy’s Pizza, is the New Hampshire Masonic Center, formerly known to many as the Masonic Temple. First chartered nearly 170 years ago in 1857, the Lodge has called Manchester home since its inception, existing in a smaller facility sharing accommodations with a migrating chapter from Bedford before seeking to open a larger, more permanent facility suitable for their increased membership after an influx at the end of the first World War.
Although groundbreaking for the space began in 1925, it took a number of years for the project to reach completion in 1933. The Masonic Center celebrated its centennial birthday last year in 2025, with a celebratory cornerstone dedicated by the Grand Lodge of New Hampshire to celebrate the facility’s one hundred year milestone. While the space has long been the refuge for the Free Mason’s meetings and events, the organization’s board of directors have made a push toward opening the building to rentals and public events in an effort to secure donations for their Capital Campaign, which seeks to provide needed and worthwhile restoration work to the building’s intricate craftsmanship so that it can continue to stand as a historic space for years to come. The Masons are accepting donations for their Capital Campaign here, and can be reached for rental inquiries at info@manchestermasonic.org