Lowell Women's Week is a component fund of the Greater Lowell Community Foundation

For over twenty-nine years, Lowell Women's Week has celebrated women in our community of Lowell, Massachusetts - from the women who have come before us to the women of today. In 2024, Lowell Women's Week will be returning for its 29th year.

All Lowell Women's Week events are open to the public!

Schedule of Events

February 24, 2024

2:00PM - Contradictory Place: Cotton Mills Alongside Anti-Slavery in Lowell Massachusetts - a Film Screening and Discussion

Join us for a screening of the documentary film 'Contradictory Place': Cotton Mills Alongside Anti-Slavery Efforts in Lowell Massachusetts featuring Prof. Robert Forrant of the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Public Historian Maritza Grooms. The screening followed by a Q&A with the film creators is free and open to the public.

Film duration - 40 min

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

February 27, 2024

6:30-8:30PM No Time to Waste: The Urgent Mission of Betty Reid Soskin

Celebrates legendary 100-year-old park ranger Betty Reid
Soskin's inspiring life, work, and urgent mission to restore
critical missing chapters of America's story.

Film duration - 53 min

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 1 - 31, 2024

Boarding House Pop-Up

Throughout the month of March, drop into the Mogan Cultural Center to learn about just some of the inspiring women of Lowell. In addition to exploring the Into an 1840's Boarding House and the new One City, Many Cultures exhibits, dive into our newest pop-up. Discover historic and modern women who have inspired what Lowell is today and read their stories. Think about the women in your own life that have set an inspiring example and share those stories as we celebrate all women this month!

Time:
MONDAY-FRIDAY 12:00PM-4:30PM
SATURDAY-SUNDAY 11:00AM-4:30PM

Location: Mogan Cultural Center, 40 French St., Lowell, MA

March 2, 2024

10:00AM-11:00AM: Lowell Mill Girls (Walking Tour)

Who were the "Mill Girls"? Join a Ranger for a walk-through downtown Lowell to learn about some of the first workers in the textile factories of Lowell. Discover the choices, hardships, and opportunities that were afforded to the Mill Girls by exploring downtown Lowell. The walk will cover 0.75 miles of walking and will involve up to an hour of walking and standing. This event is free and open to all.

Location: Leaves from Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 3, 2024

1:00PM-4:00PM: Hands on History

Looking for a fun activity to do with the whole family? Join a Ranger in a weaving workshop! Learn how cloth is designed, patterned, and made in this unique hands-on workshop. Experiment with different patterns and colors to weave your own piece of cloth using hand looms. Learn the difference between a warp and weft thread and have fun in the process!

This is a free event, and all are welcome. This event is a dropby any time program for the whole family. Due to space and capacity limits, weaving time may be limited to 30 minutes at the program facilitator's discretion and there may be a wait time to be able to weave on the looms.

In addition to the Hands-On History program, we encourage all visitors to visit the Boott Cotton Mills Museum. Check out the operating weave room and explore the stories of the workers, engineers, inventors, and investors who made Lowell the first successful planned industrial city in the United States. Learn more about the city's role as a cutting-edge developer of technology and hub of social and economic change in the American Industrial Revolution. Admission fees apply.

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Boott Cotton Mills, 3rd Floor, 115 John St., Lowell, MA

March 9, 2024

10:00AM-10:45AM: Helen Augusta Whittier: Leader, Activist, Mill Owner

When you think of a mill owner, a man's name or face probably comes to mind initially. While it's true that most owners of mills in the 18th and 19th century were men, there was one woman who joined them. Join a Ranger on a journey through the life of Helen Whittier, considered to be the only woman to ever own a major textile manufacturing company in the United States. This 45-minute talk will dive into the life of this remarkable woman who created a name for herself.

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 13, 2024

2:00PM - 3:15PM: Braided Streams: Women of Faith Speak (27th Annual)

Women student panelists from diverse faith traditions reflect on their experiences of the intersection between religion and gender. 2024 marks the 27th annual offering of Braided Streams.

Location: Dugan 101, 883 Broadway St., Lowell, MA 01854 (UMass Lowell South Campus)

March 14, 2024

10:00AM-10:45AM: Women's Action During the American Civil War (Walking Tour)

While no battles of the Civil War were fought in Lowell, the people of Lowell were involved in a variety of ways, from fighting to providing support. One group not in the forefront of the conversation that aided in the war effort was the US Sanitary Commission made up of women of the Union. Join a ranger to explore how women were able to have a large impact in the American Civil War through local organizations and groups like the US Sanitary Commission. This 45-minute walking tour will explore a few notable places in downtown Lowell and tell the stories of the impact these women had on the victory of the Union. The walk will cover 0.75 miles of walking and will involve up to an hour of walking and standing. This event is free and open to all.

Location: Leaves from Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 14, 2024

2:00PM - 3:15PM: Braided Streams: Women of Faith Speak (27th Annual)

Women student panelists from diverse faith traditions reflect on their experiences of the intersection between religion and gender. 2024 marks the 27th annual offering of Braided Streams.

Location: Dugan 101, 883 Broadway St., Lowell, MA 01854 (UMass Lowell South Campus)

March 16, 2024

10:00AM-11:00AM: Acre Neighborhood Walking Tour

Parish Historian and Archivist David McKean and will lead a walking tour of "God's Holy Acre". The tour will last one hour, and will involve an hour of walking and standing. They request, that you wear comfortable shoes and dress for the weather. This event is free and open to all.

Location: Leaves from Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 16, 2024

1:00PM-4:00PM: Hands on History

Looking for a fun activity to do with the whole family? Join a Ranger in a weaving workshop! Learn how cloth is designed, patterned, and made in this unique hands-on workshop. Experiment with different patterns and colors to weave your own piece of cloth using hand looms. Learn the difference between a warp and weft thread and have fun in the process!

This is a free event, and all are welcome. This event is a drop-by any time program for the whole family. Due to space and capacity limits, weaving time may be limited to 30 minutes at the program facilitator's discretion and there may be a wait time to be able to weave on the looms.

In addition to the Hands-On History program, we encourage all visitors to visit the Boott Cotton Mills Museum. Check out the operating weave room and explore the stories of the workers, engineers, inventors, and investors who made Lowell the first successful planned industrial city in the United States. Learn more about the city's role as a cutting-edge developer of technology and hub of social and economic change in the American Industrial Revolution. Admission fees apply.

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Boott Cotton Mills, 3rd Floor, 115 John St., Lowell, MA

March 17, 2024

12:00-12:15PM & 2:30PM-2:45PM: The Collection Connection: Celebrating

Join a Park Ranger for a short discussion of the Irish related objects in the One City, Many Cultures exhibit and their connection to Irish Step Dancing. Lowell National Historical Park's newest exhibit, One City, Many Cultures explores how culture shapes and connects people and communities using stories of Lowell from across time.

Location: Irish Culture - Mogan Cultural Center, 40 French St., Lowell, MA

March 23, 2024

10:00AM-11:00AM: Building Independence (Walking Tour)

Women have found different ways to claim independence over time, even when it wasn't readily given. Join a ranger for this 1-hour walking tour of downtown Lowell to learn how the buildings that created the city of Lowell also offered women a chance at independence previously unheard of. Explore some of the ways the women of Lowell were able to gain access to bank accounts, own and manage property, and decide how to spend their hard-earned wages.

The walk will cover 0.75 miles of walking and will involve up to an hour of walking and standing. This event is free and open to all.

Location: Leaves from Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 24, 2024

2:00PM-2:45PM: Mill Girl Talk

Join two Park Rangers as they discuss the lives of women working in Lowell a century apart. The presentation will explore how women's work environment, home life and leisure activities can be compared between the Mill Girls in the 1840s and women workers during the 1940s in Lowell.

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

March 25, 2024

7:00AM-9:00AM: Annual Lowell Women's Week Breakfast

Please join us for a morning of inspiring words, community, and recognizing the achievements of extraordinary women in greater Lowell.

Keynote Speaker: Yun-Ju Choi, Chief Executive Officer of Coalition for a Better Acre.

Emcee: Cathy Mercado, Executive Director of Merrimack Valley Housing Partnership

Location: Lenzi's, 810 Merrimack Ave, Dracut, MA

March 26, 2024

6:30PM-8:30PM: Inhabitants: An Indigenous Perspective

Inhabitants follows five Native American Tribes across deserts, coastlines, forests, and prairies as they restore their traditional land management practices.

Film duration - 76 min

Location: Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market St., Lowell MA

Date: February 24-March 26, 2024

Cost: Free

Location: Various Venues in Lowell, MA

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