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 Park Service.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Women. A significant historical year for this entry is 1837.
Location.
this page online
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 of this marker); The Rule of the Bell (within shouting distance of this marker); Florence Patti Marion (within shouting distance of this marker); Evolution of a Millyard (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Birth of an Industrial City (about 400 feet away); W.H. Parker Building (about 400 feet away); Brown, Fay, and Watson Houses (about 500 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Lowell.
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 Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
2. Boarding Houses (Lowell National Historical Park). (Submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
3. The Lowell Mill Girls Go on Strike, 1836 (Robinson). (Submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.)
4. Lowell Mill Girls and the factory system, 1840 (Gilder Lehrman)
Credits. This page was last revised on October 25, 2020. It was originally submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 227 times since then and 23 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on May 26, 2018, by William Fischer, Jr. of Scranton, Pennsylvania.
