Preserving the good and the bad of New England mill culture

Towers in the central courtyard of Boott Mills, in the Lowell National Historical Park. Lowell became one of the first great industrial complexes in the United States by revolutionalizing textile making in America.

—Photo by Jlpapple 

“Lowell decided that its identity was important. Important to its people and the nation. There are hundreds of people who should be credited for discovering this America. Many workers …wanted to good and the bad of the past preserved, rather than flattened and denied.’’

— U.S. Sen. Paul Tsongas (1941-1997), a Lowell native who was a prime mover in creating the Lowell National Historical Park.