Monday, October 7, 2013

Moving right along

Today (Monday) my friend Dave and I went to the city of Lowell Ma. Though Dave and I are both from the same city, Dave lived in Lowell for about 25 years. Lowell is a fairly large city with a population of about 105,000+. It was a planned city founded in 1820 as a textile and manufacturing center. Located next to the Merrimack river and it's rapids for power it became the birthplace of the American industrial revolution. The city has many canals running through it that powered all the mills and factories. The city went into decline as more and more factories moved south for cheaper labor. By the 1920's it was over. It has rebounded and taken advantage of it's historical significance. Some of the factories have become condos, some museums. Some are still empty or falling apart.    

We had lunch at the Wortham House Cafe'. It's a tavern of some note because a few famous people have bent their elbows there. Jack Kerouac, Edgar Allen Poe and Ed McMahon. One block up the street is the birthplace of the painter James Whistler. You know, Whistlers Mother and so on. I didn't get all the pictures I wanted. We went to the top of a parking garage to get a more prominent view of the city. I asked Dave how many floors the garage was, curious to see how high up we were going to be. He said 5 floors. It turned out to be 6 floors, but that's another story. Any way it was a bit disappointing and the sun was in and out all day with an occasional quick pelting of rain now and then. You can see smokestacks all around. All relics from 100 years ago.

There are beautiful homes and mansions away from downtown. I didn't get a chance to get any shots of them but I will some other time. I didn't get many shots of the factories but some have been rehabbed like the one on the right in the first picture and a close up of the building in the middle left to disrepair.




There are some beautiful buildings in Lowell all relics of when the city was the industrial manufacturing center in the U.S.
Lowell City Hall
Lowell Public Library
The Wortham house Cafe est. in the1880's.

 
The original bar and tin ceiling with original steam powered fans. Now powered by electricity.


 
Whistlers house
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
An original cobble stone street

One of the canals

Well that was my Monday kiddies. I probably won't be back in front of this screen for 24 hours. I have a very long day tomorrow. So for now, good night, good morning or good afternoon.
I'm outta here.
  
 

4 comments:

  1. Fascinating. Loved the tour. The library is awesome course every pic is. I visited last post and forgot to comment. Hope you had sandwich ham ;-)

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  2. Awesome photos Paul. I would love to visit there. The trees are not turning here. The leaves are just dying. Because of the drought we had this summer. I still have hope for some of them.

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  3. You could have been a great history teacher. I learn a lot by seeing your photos and reading all about places that I have never visited. The architecture of the past is really impressive. Thank you. Oh, and the perspective in your pictures is really interesting.

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  4. Awesome and beautiful building's , thank you for the tour.
    Have a good day

    Sheila

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