Lowell (The Mill City)

From its birth in 1826, Lowell has thrived, declined, and been resurrected as a mill city. Today, it is celebrated for its rich history. These postcards from the 1890s to the 1940s display the energy of this industrial city and its native and immigrant population as it grew, built, worked, and played. Vintage cards capture both familiar mills along the Merrimack River and vanished businesses. Coupled with compelling narrative, they tell stories of a horse-drawn fire engine, textile mill workers, grand civic buildings, floods, and even the aftermath of an explosion.