The Boott Mills in

Lowell, Massachusetts Lowell () is a city in Massachusetts, United States. Alongside Cambridge, Massachusetts, Cambridge, it is one of two traditional county seat, seats of Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County. With an estimated population of 115,554 in ...

were a part of an extensive group of

cotton mill A cotton mill is a building that houses spinning or weaving machinery for the production of yarn or cloth from cotton, an important product during the Industrial Revolution in the development of the factory system. Although some were driven ...

s, built in 1835 alongside a power canal system in this important cotton town. Its incorporators were Abbott Lawrence, Nathan Appleton, and John Amory Lowell, and is named after Kirk Boott, the first Agent of the Proprietors of Locks & Canals in Lowell. Today, the Boott Mills complex is the most complete remainder of antebellum textile mills built in Lowell. The original Mill No. 6 is managed by the National Park Service unit Lowell National Historical Park and houses the Boott Cotton Mills Museum and the Tsongas Industrial History Center for K-12 educational programs.

Location

Lowell is north-west of

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

on the

Merrimack River The Merrimack River (or Merrimac River, an occasional earlier spelling) is a river in the northeastern United States. It rises at the confluence of the Pemigewasset and Winnipesaukee rivers in Franklin, New Hampshire, flows southward into M ...

. The location was chosen because of the water-power potential of the

and the already-existing Pawtucket Canal, linking the Merrimack with the Concord River. At Lowell, the Merrimack drops over a distance of , thereby suitable to provide . Water had been diverted through canals and locks to enable navigation, and by a simple diversion the overflow could be used to power

waterwheel A water wheel is a machine for converting the kinetic energy of flowing or falling water into useful forms of power, often in a watermill. A water wheel consists of a large wheel (usually constructed from wood or metal), with numerous blade ...

History

Kirk Boott worked for the company responsible for the

Merrimack Canal The Merrimack Canal is a power canal in Lowell, Massachusetts. The canal, dug in the 1820s, begins at the Pawtucket Canal just above Swamp Locks, and empties into the Merrimack River near the Boott Cotton Mills. The Merrimack Canal was the f ...

the first

power canal A power canal is a canal used for hydraulic power generation, rather than for transport of watercraft. The power canal was a major factor in the Industrial Revolution in New England in the 19th century. Most early power canals were mill races ...

in Lowell, which was already driving other mills, and built his mills in 1835, staffing them using the Waltham-Lowell system. Running off of

hydropower Hydropower (from Ancient Greek -, "water"), also known as water power or water energy, is the use of falling or fast-running water to Electricity generation, produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by energy transformation, ...

, the original operation consisted of four gable-roofed brick mill buildings. Eventually, floors were added, giving them flat roofs, the buildings were connected by stair towers and clock towers, and other buildings were added to the complex as well. Steam power and electric power were eventually introduced.

Decline

The New England textile industry was in decline by

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and collapsed after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

; the Boott Mills ceased operations in 1958. In the late 1970s, they became a key component of the Lowell National Historical Park, largely because the complex stood virtually whole, unlike other complexes which had suffered fires, or selective or wholesale demolition, like the older

Merrimack Manufacturing Company The Merrimack Manufacturing Company (also known as Merrimack Mills) was the first of the major textile manufacturing concerns to open in Lowell, Massachusetts, beginning operations in 1823. History After the death of Francis Cabot Lowell ...

. The Boott Mills site retains nine major factory structures built between 1835 and the 1880s. As such, it is a catalog of industrial development over that time period.

Boott Cotton Mills Museum

The Boott Mills are now an example of adaptive re-use; they contain the Lowell National Historical Park Boott Cotton Mills Museum featuring a recreated weave room and other exhibits, privately owned and managed residential housing, and offices. The National Park Service also maintains a single row of recreated ' Mill girl' boarding house exhibits, modeled after that built to house the mainly young, female workforce recruited according to the

Lowell System The Waltham-Lowell system was a labor and production model employed during the rise of the textile industry in the United States, particularly in New England, during the rapid expansion of the Industrial Revolution in the early 19th century. The ...

.Mogan Cultural Center
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Transit

The National Streetcar Museum currently has a

heritage streetcar Heritage streetcars or heritage trams are a part of the efforts to preserve rail transit heritage. In addition to preserving street-running rail vehicles, heritage streetcar operations can include upkeep of historic rail infrastructure. Working ...

stop here.

Archives and records

Boot Cotton Mills account book
at Baker Library Special Collections, Harvard Business School.

References

External links

Boott Cotton Mills Museum
- Lowell National Historical Park *{{HAER , survey=MA-16 , id=ma1289 , title=Boott Cotton Mills, John Street at Merrimack River, Lowell, Middlesex County, MA , photos=62 , color=5 , dwgs=100 , data=101 , cap=5

Images

Image:1850 Boott Corp Lowell Massachusetts detail of map by Sidney and Neff BPL 11051.png, Boott Corp, 1850 Image:Boott Mills Power Loom in operation.JPG, Boott Mills Power Loom in operation, 2015 Image:Boott Boardinghouse Store.jpg, Boardinghouse and storehouse, 2005 Image:Boott courtyard.jpg, Inner courtyard, 2005 File:Boott Mills east courtyard.jpg, Boott Mills east courtyard, 2014 File:Line shaft and power looms at Boott Mills, Lowell, Massachusetts.JPG, The exhibit, 2014 Textile mills in Lowell, Massachusetts Cotton mills in the United States Articles containing video clips Historic American Engineering Record in Massachusetts Museums in Lowell, Massachusetts Industry museums in Massachusetts Textile museums in the United States