No. 4 (2024)
Essays

Material Culture: The transformation of a New England cotton mill into a centre for learning and cultural preservation

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  • Joanne Benham Rennick
Joanne Benham Rennick
Wilfrid Laurier university
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/fh-3061

Published 31-12-2024

Keywords

  • cotton,
  • new england,
  • mills,
  • history,
  • culture

How to Cite

Benham Rennick, J. (2024). Material Culture: The transformation of a New England cotton mill into a centre for learning and cultural preservation. Fashion Highlight, (4), 58–65. https://doi.org/10.36253/fh-3061

Copyright (c) 2025 Joanne Benham Rennick

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Abstract

This paper examines the Boott Cotton Mill in Lowell, Massachusetts, tracing its evolution from a major textile manufacturing hub in the 19th century to its current status as a Museum and educational centre within the Lowell National Historic Park. Initially a pivotal player in the global cotton industry, the mill was integral to New England’s economic growth, contributing significantly to American industrialization. However, globalization and technological changes led to its economic decline and eventual closure, reflecting broader deindustrialization trends.

Its subsequent transformation into a National Historic Park represents a shift from industrial production to cultural preservation and urban restoration. The park now offers exhibits, guided tours, and educational programs that highlight the history of textile manufacturing, and the various ways in which the efforts to produce fabric also wove the culture and shaped the identity of a community. This preliminary study situates the mill, its labourers and its products both historically and today in the form of a National Historic Park, as a shaper and perpetuator of fashion, culture, education and community while pointing to opportunities for further research to understand the relationship between fibre production and culture.

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