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.

There Is A Lot to Like About Lowell -- The Four Diners

"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 Four Diners

Arthur's Paradise Diner

112 Bridge Street

This is one of the two diners celebrating their 75th anniversaries.

Original ceiling.

Trolley Pizza

984 Gorham Street

I ate here many times while I worked at Prince Spaghetti, since it was within walking distance.

Club Diner

145 Dutton Street

This diner is also celebrating their 75th Anniversary and the owner was kind to spend some time giving me a little of their history.

The owner explained a few items on the wall, especially when I asked who the people were with Senator Paul Tsongas, a Lowell resident, in the photo above. Steven Panagiotakos, Senator Edward Kennedy and the owner were the others.

Owl Diner (aka Four Sisters Owl Diner)

244 Appleton Street

I used to go to this diner quite often, since I knew one of the Four sisters. She has since opened her own restaurant, Rosie's Diner in No. Chelmsford.

This topic was chosen because I remember three of them from the 1960s, I love their history and how they look.

For more information, check out the below article for more detail about these diners. 

http://dinerhotline.wordpress.com/2010/10/23/diners-of-lowell-mass-circa-early-1980s/

There Is A Lot to Like About Lowell -- The City Hall, Our Beautiful Building

"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 Hall, Our Beautiful Building

Lowell City Hall

Lowell, Massachusetts

One of the best reports with history and excellent photos of the City Hall was written by Corey Sciuto, please see his post HERE. His site was discovered after I took my pictures, so I need to go back and retake and add additional ones to this post.

City Clerk's Office on first floor, this where you can get birth, marriage and death certificates.

Second floor looking down to first.

Mayor's Reception Room.

Lots of stained glass, this is the only photo of mine where you can see the design, on sunny days they just don't show up, as seen below.

Council Chamber

(above and below)

Cloak room.

These four photos were taken out the windows, I had no idea there was a smokestack in the middle.

 The Lowell Library is to the right.

 Ground level with snack bar, various offices and an old vault with brick floor.

 Lower entrance and exit.

 View from front steps looking toward the city on an early Sunday morning.