Longtime local concert series West Side Folk is celebrating its 20th anniversary season with five concerts this fall.

Since its founding in 1995, the Lawrence concert series for singer-songwriters and folk musicians has staged more than 250 performances.

A handful of nationally known folk musicians will headline the series’ 20th anniversary season beginning this weekend.

The season will kick off with Beppe Gambetta on Friday, and will be followed by Brooks Williams on Oct. 9, Eliza Gilkyson on Nov. 13, Tony Furtado on Nov. 20 and Mark Erelli with opening act Sky Smeed on Dec. 5.

All shows begin at 7:30 p.m., and aside from Furtado’s performance at the Cider Gallery, 810 Pennsylvania St., will be held at Unity Church of Lawrence, 900 Madeline Lane.

Tickets range from $20 to $25, and can be purchased at www.westsidefolk.org, Mass Street Music at 1347 Massachusetts St. and at the door on the night of the show. Tickets for all five shows are $73.

West Side Folk’s first concert was singer-songwriter Dar Williams on Sept. 19, 1995. Since then, the concert series has featured artists such as Greg Brown, Tim O’Brien, Dougie MacLean, Martin Sexton and Lucy Kaplansky.

“When we formed West Side Folk 20 years ago, we were so lucky to have such terrific artists as my friends Dar Williams, Ellis Paul and Susan Werner want to play for us right when we were starting out,” said Bob McWilliams, West Side Folk’s founder and artistic director, in a press release. “I would not have imagined that we’d still be doing this 20 years later, with some of the best singer-songwriters, as well as bluegrass and Celtic musicians, gracing our concerts. We’ve also had terrific artists from the region, such as Kelley Hunt, Connie Dover, and the late Kim Forehand. Thanks to audience support, and many amazing volunteers over the years, we’ve been able to put world class artists in intimate, listening room settings.”