Snapshots: Smashing pumpkins at Newton City Hall

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A computerized machine hurls a log into a pumpkin at Newton's Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

It’s been an intense year for many. And there’s something about eviscerating a pumpkin that helps get that stress out.

Green Newton, in partnership with the Division of Public Works, hosted its annual Pumpkin Smash outside City Hall on Saturday, in which thousands of pumpkins met their messy end.

There were games, informational booths, the Whoopie Wagon and pumpkin carnage as far as the eye could see. There was the usual catapult, a local favorite that shows just how high a gourd can go. There was a wall of spikes to throw pumpkins against. And this year, the Ligerbots (the robotics students who built a computerized guillotine-like machine to smash pumpkins with last year) had a complex contraption that sent a log flying into each pumpkin, like something out of a Final Destination movie.

It’s all in good fun for a good cause. The pumpkin bits (literally tons) are collected for composting, helping the city stay green while giving families a fun way to blow off steam.

Check out these photos (and videos) from Newton’s Pumpkin Smash 2025.

Kids throw pumpkins against spikes at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

Ward 2 City Councilor David Micley teaches his son, Eitan, how to shoot a free throw in basketball, with a pumpkin and a dump truck, at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

DPW workers collect pumpkin parts for composting at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

Newton Chief Operating Officer Jonathan Yeo speaks with someone about sustainability at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

Fig City News Editor Bruce Henderson stands in line to load his pumpkin into a catapult at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

DPW workers load pumpkins into a catapult at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle

Mayor Ruthanne Fuller and Shara Ertel, owner of the local store Fulfilled Goods, talk about sustainability ideas at Newton’s Pumpkin Smash on Saturday, Nov. 1, 2025. Photo by Bryan McGonigle