Labor Day with the Mill Girls and an Irish Canal Worker

"Homage to Women" by Mico Kaufman (See link for his education and works.)

Located in the Market Mills Courtyard

Market Street, Lowell, Massachusetts

"This sculpture is a tribute to Lowell's nineteenth

century 'mill girls.' The intertwined figures also

represent the struggles and aspirations of all

women throughout time."

During the annual Folk Festival in July, the courtyard is used for music and fun. You can see the sculpture on the below left picture.

The Worker

Located in downtown Lowell, MA.

Corner of Shattuck and Market Streets

This work, constructed in 1985 by Elliot and Ivan Schwartz, depicts an Irish canal worker widening the canal ways of Lowell.

The Worker

In 1821 Hugh Commisky led a 

band of laborers on a trek from

Charlestown to Lowell. With muscle

and sweat they dredged canals in

the soil of rugged farmland. As

others joined in their toil a complex

waterpower system evolved, creat-

ing a new era of textile production.

When one generation had endured

and the clamor of manufacturing

increased, immigrants came by

the thousands seeking labor and

a better life. This fountain cele-

brates workers and their contribu-

tion to industrial and human heritage.

Lowell Heritage State Park

Lowell National Historical Park

ARTIST(S): Elliot Schwartz, sculptor; Ivan Schwartz, sculptor.

DATE: Installed 1985.

From the Lowell Historical Society,

Hugh Commiskey died at his home on Adams Street, at age of 82, December 12, 1871.

 

The above photo was taken Sept. 5, 2015 (a few days after it was repaired) and shows the complete sculpture (with trolley on the right). The pry bar had been sawed off just below this worker's lower hand (see previous photo). The photo below shows the water and stone boulders at a different angle.

 

This courtyard is also a place for people to mingle or wait, as the people below are doing during the Folk Festival in July.

To Remember "Homage to Women" and "The Worker" on this Labor Day

Early Family in Lowell, Massachusetts

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This is a photo of my husband's family. His mother is the little girl in the front, with her siblings. His grandmother, born 1892, is the lady in the middle. Since the children were born in Lowell, undoubtedly, this is where the photo was taken, circa 1917. The husband was an electrical engineer in a silk factory, the wife didn't work, the oldest daughter was a bookkeeper in a yarn mill. The other children were not working in 1930, per the census. In later years, my husband's mother worked in a mill, and later at Prince Spaghetti as a bookkeeper.

There Is A Lot to Like About Lowell -- The City of Mill Girls and Immigrants

"There is A Lot to Like About Lowell" is the city slogan.

(See tab on right side called "Lowell Series" for many more articles about Lowell.)

The City of Mill Girls and Immigrants

This door opens to the free Mill Girls and Immigrants Exhibit by the Lowell National Park Service, in Boarding House Park. I love this exhibit and have been quite a few times, not only to see the charming period rooms, similar to those that the Mill Girls lived in, but the Jack Kerouac exhibit, the display of a lot of Lowell memorabilia and an outstanding timeline of the wave of many immigrants who came to the city.

Bedroom for the Mill Girls (above and below).

Dining Room (above).

The Keeper's Room (above).

Partial display of some of the museum (below). These photos were taken in 2013 and December 2014. Repair work is being done on one floor, so the exhibit will be closed until late January.

Signs and time tables for transportation to Lowell.

"A 1912 map of Lowell shows five major immigrant communities scattered in clusters around the city. Little Canada, which bordered the Northern Canal, had become the primary neighborhood for French Canadians. Greeks concentrated in the Acre along Market Street, while Poles, Portuguese, and Russian Jews had their own enclave within each of these areas, ethnic institutions evolved that catered to the needs of the immigrant group."  See: HERE for map and article in full.

"Because the factories paid workers extremely low wages, it was necessary for both children and adults to take jobs in the mills. On pay day, family members often pooled their wages. In 1872, for example, some large families lived on $7.00 a week."

Timeline of Lowell.

 Great display of old family photos. If you are working on your family history, and your family or ancestors lived in Lowell, this exhibit is a must to see.

Church of the Mill Girls, Lowell, Massachusetts

St. Anne's Church, Episcopal, Est. 1824

Lowell, Massachusetts

History of St. Anne's Church and the Mill Girls of Lowell.