Lowell, MA - Canal Boat Tours begin Memorial Day weekend at Lowell National Historical Park. Visit Lowell and cruise the historical canals by boat and ride a trolley through the historic downtown. Canal boat tours begin for the 2018 season on May 26. Lowell National Historical Park will offer its popular canal tours on the 3-day Memorial Day weekend (May 26-28), and the following weekend (June 2-3). Canal boat tours will be offered daily beginning Saturday, June 9.
Lowell National Historical Park, one of 417 units of the National Park Service, inspires and engages people in the discovery, preservation and stewardship of the human stories, tangible reminders, and legacies of America's industrialization. The park features a historic cotton mill complex, the Boott Cotton Mills Museum with a working weave room, 5.6 miles of canals and canal walkways, operating gatehouses, and historic replica trolleys running throughout the day.
For a complete schedule of programs and hours throughout the spring and summer, please visit www.nps.gov/lowell. Exhibit and program times for May 26-June 9 are:
Boat Tours & Trolley Programs
Working the Water Canal Boat Tour
Saturdays, Sundays, and Memorial Day (1 hour 30 minutes)
11:00 a.m., 12:00 noon, 2:00 p.m. & 3:00 p.m., starting at the Visitor Center
Who dug the canals? Who worked the locks and gates? Discover the human stories of the workers who built and operated Lowell’s remarkable waterpower system. Find out who is till “working the water" today on this 90-minute tour on the Pawtucket Canal. Fees: Adults, $12.00; Youths, 6 -16 & Students $8.00; Seniors (62+) $10.00; Children 5 and under, free.
Mill & Trolley Tour
Monday thru Friday (Except Memorial Day) (75 minutes)
2:30 p.m., starting at the Boott Cotton Mills Museum Entrance
Discover the diversity and variety of Lowell's stories. Find out about the famous Mill Girls, the technology that powered the mills, the ways that immigrants have contributed to the industrial city, and how all of these have shaped both the city's past and its present. Tour combines a trolley ride, a short walk, and a guided visit to the River Transformed exhibit at the Wannalancit Mill. Free.
PARK EXHIBITS & PLACES TO GO
Visitor Center - 246 Market Street (Parking at 304 Dutton Street)
9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Daily
Begin your visit at the Visitor Center in Market Mills, one of the city’s original textile mills. Plan your exploration of the park and learn about Lowell’s industrial past and rich cultural heritage. Watch the 17-minute introductory film “Lowell: the Industrial Revelation", make reservations for park tours and other programs, and shop in the Museum Store. Also check out the Children’s Corner, stamp your passport book, and become a Junior Ranger. Free admission.
Boott Cotton Mills Museum - 115 John Street
9:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Daily
Experience the roar of a 1920s weave room with 100+ year-old operating power looms! The park’s primary exhibit includes the weave room, interactive exhibits, and video programs about the Industrial Revolution, labor, and the rise, fall, and rebirth of Lowell. Stop in the Boott Museum Store for a shuttle of your own, or cloth manufactured in the Boott Mills weave room.
Fees: Adults, $6.00; Youths, 6 -16 & Students $3.00; Seniors (62+) $4.00; Children 5 and under, free.
Mill Girls & Immigrants Exhibit - 40 French Street
1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m., Daily.
Explore the history of Lowell’s famed “mill girls" and the legacies of immigrants to the city in a Boott Mills boardinghouse. The Mill Girls & Immigrants Exhibit, located in the Mogan Cultural Center, tells the human story of the Industrial Revolution through the experiences of the working people of Lowell. Free admission.
Trolleys - Trolley Stops at the Visitor Center and Boott Cotton Mills Museum
Daily, Schedule Varies
Lowell National Historical Park’s historic replica trolleys run in downtown Lowell daily carrying visitors and students from the Visitor Center to the Boott Mills and back. On select days, the Seashore Trolley Museum (of Kennebunkport, Maine) also operates the Streetcar named “Desire," a vintage 1924 trolley that operated in New Orleans up until 1924. Schedules vary, so please check for the trolley schedule at the Visitor Center Desk or trolley stops. Free.
To learn more about these and other park offerings, including the Junior Ranger program, ranger-led tours, upcoming special events and programs, and expanded summer offerings beginning Saturday, June 9, stop by the Visitor Center at 246 Market Street, or contact Lowell National Historical Park at (978) 970-5000. Information is also available online at www.nps.gov/lowe, or through social media at www.facebook.com/LowellNPS, www.twitter.com/LowellNPS, or www.instagram.com/LowellNPS.
Tags: trolley tours boat tours canalboat tours memorial day weekend mill city cotton mills canals industrial revolution textiles immigrants water power
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
