In the Shadow of the Mills
To the right stands a boardinghouse block built in 1837, for the Boott Cotton Mills workers. Dozens of company-owned boardinghouses served as home for the thousands of young, single women - Lowell's "mill girls."
This block was one of eight owned and managed by the Boott Corporation. Quarters were crowded, and rules were strict. Curfew was at 10 p.m., church attendance was mandatory, and improper behavior was prohibited. Still, the boardinghouse provided an atmosphere where workers shared experiences and forged bonds of solidarity.
As working conditions worsened, Yankee women resisted with strikes and petition drives. When their protests were ignored, they began to leave the mills.
Like Yankee women before them, immigrants came to Lowell for mill work. They usually chose to live in ethnic neighborhoods rather than corporation boardinghouses.
[Main illustration caption reads]
1876 Bird's eye view of the Boott Cotton Mills and its boardinghouses.
[Bottom left photo captions read]
Workers in front of Boott Boardinghouse, Ca. 1870
Booth Mills boardinghouse, pre-restoration, ca. 1985
Erected by National
this page online
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1837.
Location. 42° 38.86′ N, 71° 18.509′ W. Marker is in Lowell, Massachusetts, in Middlesex County. It is in Downtown. It can be reached from French Street. Marker is near the NW corner of Boarding House Park, about 150 feet NE of French Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Boarding House Park, Lowell MA 01852, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Greater Boston and in the Merrimack Valley. It is also in the American Northeast, in New England, and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once one of the original Thirteen Colonies.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Harnessing Waterpower (within shouting distance of this marker); The Lowell Sculptures: One, Two, and Three (within shouting distance
Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker.
Also see . . .
1. The Mill Girls (Lowell National Historical Park). (Submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
2. Boarding Houses (Lowell National Historical Park). (Submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
3. Lowell Mill Girls and the factory system, 1840 (Gilder Lehrman). (Submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
Credits. This page was last revised on July 7, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 650 times since then and 50 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
