Response #1

Anna Kleis

Professor Zabalbeascoa

FYSH: Text and the City HON 110-303

2 March 2015

Oh, Lowell, You’re My Home

            “All was expectancy. Changes were coming. Things were going to happen, nobody could guess what.” Written by poet and former mill worker Lucy Larcom in her account of her childhood in New England, this phrase epitomizes the start of a new era in Lowell, Massachusetts. The Merrimack Valley’s powerfully running rivers and canals made it the ideal spot for generating money. Soon enough, immigrants were flooding the streets of Lowell with hopes of snatching a highly coveted job working in the mills that would initiate the Industrial Revolution. In my time here as a nursing major and freshman at UMass Lowell, I am grateful to be living in such a place that is rich in history. Although I think I know a lot of historical facts about this place, I only feel as though I have scratched the surface. Lowell truly does have an enormous amount to offer, which I have learned in my first one (and a half) semesters as a student here. For this class and on my own, I have ventured out into the streets of Lowell, basking in its diversity. Within present-day Lowell, I have been able to delve into Lowell’s past, present, and future without having to go far. I have visited the Boott Cotton Museum in downtown Lowell, an Indian restaurant “Paradise” just off of South Campus, and the Tsongas Center conveniently located on East Campus. All of these endeavors represent two things to me: Lowell’s abundant sense of community and the vital role that every building on every street corner plays in this historical city. These different locations serve as sources of Lowell’s past, present, and future.

            I would like to start off with a discussion of the place that signifies Lowell’s past: the Boott Cotton Museum. This monumental building has been preserved to educate the public about the famous fabric that was woven there and the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution. On Friday, February 6, my classmates and I trekked through the once again slush-covered sidewalks of downtown Lowell. With our Starbucks lattes in hand and our GPS-savvy smartphones telling us which turns to make at each street, we arrived at the mill with time to spare. Soon, we met our tour guide, a park ranger whose name I do not recall, who assembled us and gave us a brief history of how much this particular area of Lowell has changed since the mills were running. Then, he guided us through what was once the place of work for so many individuals who had to make ends meet. The actual room where the fabric was made was overwhelming. To simulate the work environment that the mill workers experienced everyday, a fraction, ninety to be exact, of the machines were turned on just to provide a glimpse to the process of weaving textiles. This giant room was noisy, with the repetitive and rhythmic swish and bang of the spinning wheels. Our tour guide told us to envision ourselves working here, five or six o’clock in the morning for twelve hours every day except for half days on Saturday and days off on Sunday. He then proceeded to show us upstairs, where we observed the museum portion. In that time, we all performed an activity that imitated working on an assembly line in a factory. We were required to produce a certain amount of “towels” in a given time to meet the quota. Doing this, I could imagine how exhausted and tediously frustrated the workers of the past became. Yet, they persevered and made the economy what it is today.

This tour of the mill made me gracious for the life that I have now, because, being a teenage girl, if I was plopped in the 1830’s or 1840’s, I would most likely have to work in a mill.  With the amount of labor they exerted and time they spent working, it is no surprise that these mill workers laid the foundation and more for the Industrial Revolution that has made our society livable and our workplaces workable. I enjoyed my visit to the Boott Cotton Mill because it refreshed and expanded my third grade history lessons into a significance that I can interpret much better today as an eager college student ready to absorb all sorts of information. The Boott Cotton Mill and all other Lowell mills are vital representations of Lowell’s past. If it were not for their fabrication, Lowell may not have been as prosperous as it was. Thus, Lowell might not have been the place of this fine University I am attending and the atmosphere where I am meeting so many respectable people and learning so many intriguing things. The mills are a giant piece of the puzzle that is Lowell.

The second excursion I had the pleasure of attending was one of my optional ones. Naturally, with the plethora of restaurants that line each neighborhood of Lowell, I decided to go to one with food that I have never tried before. I had been talking with my international friends from India, Sanjeev and Bakhtiyar, and they knew about an Indian restaurant right off of South Campus. My friends Jordan, Miranda and I decided to take up their offer to go out to dinner on the Saturday after visiting the mill. The restaurant, called “Paradise,” is a chain restaurant located on Middlesex Street in Lowell that my international friends pay frequent visits to in order to get an authentic taste of home. After we sat down, our friends ordered for us with our permission so we could try what they think is the most wholesome and generic (but delicious) Indian food. We feasted on naan, “butter,” a chicken dish cooked with bay leaves, yogurt, red onions and lime, a spicy entrée named “chettinad,” and a chicken curry dish. With our taste buds tingling and our stomachs stuffed to the brim, we headed over to an Indian supermarket situated adjacent to Paradise where we bought traditional Indian bindis and henna cones, which we donned later in the evening.

What made this excursion adventurous to me was the fact that it got me out of my cultural (and maybe comfort) zone. Never having tried Indian food before, I was pleasantly surprised by its rich and satisfying taste. I was happy I went with my international friends because they made it a more enriching experience. They talked about their family’s history with these particular dishes and their own gratification of eating them because they tasted like home.  I believe that this excursion of mine signifies Lowell’s present-day diversity. Coming from Melrose, a purely “white” town versus being here, I am taken aback every day by the outstanding amount of diversity beaming its beautiful, proud smile on every street corner. As of right now, the city of Lowell is a bustling, distinct place. The University is making immense progress; a UMass Lowell something or other seems to show up everywhere, marking its territory and showing that it won’t be going anywhere. The here and now of Lowell composes a great amount of the city’s history and intimates at what’s to come.

The third and final excursion I attended for this portion of the semester was a UMass Lowell versus BU hockey game at the Tsongas Center also on Friday, February 6^th. I went with my suitemates who wanted to witness the showdown between two powerhouse teams. As a hockey player, referee and scorekeeper, I enjoy watching hockey games more than anything. Therefore, even though this was a required excursion, it did not feel like it because I was in my element. Before the game, I met Dr. Canning and briefly chatted with him, as I would not be able to stay in the Club Room West for long considering the influx of honors students’ parents who would also be attending this pre-game get-together. My early arrival yielded my friends and I decent seats. We were only a couple of rows back from the ice, obtaining a perfect view of the ever-moving puck being shot at rocket speeds.

Despite Lowell’s loss in the game, I had a great time at the game with my friends. I love being in the Tsongas Center for its intense, game-day atmosphere and its credibility. Present-day professional athletes have played for UMass Lowell at the Tsongas Center. Since 2000, the River Hawks have featured six players in the NHL and thirty-five NHL’ers in the history of the program. The Tsongas Center yields great promise in the form of future stars. Now with the men’s basketball team playing out of the Tsongas Center, it is without question that some will go on to the NBA or other professional leagues. In addition, it is a popular venue for concerts, thus stars in the making or those who are already famous will expand their publicity at the Tsongas Center. This arena is not only a big part of Lowell’s past and present, it is an even bigger part of Lowell’s future. It illuminates that all the diligence one puts in eventually pays off in the form of reputable success. There is no limit as to what the Tsongas Center can hold in terms of this kind of prosperity.

Although my excursions were not exactly related to each other, they did retain a common theme throughout them: the role that certain places play in the role of Lowell’s dynamic history. Each building, landmark, street corner, etc. exemplifies a little bit or a lot of what Lowell has to offer and holds a special home in the history books. Traveling to these places and witnessing them first-hand has made me extensively appreciate my home for the next four years. I am so glad that I made my decision to come here for my schooling. I feel that Lowell is one of those places that will never let one down no matter what because it is constantly trying to make improvements and fit the needs of its inhabitants. As my excursion destinations, the Boott Cotton Mill, Paradise restaurant, and Tsongas Center have given me a solid grasp on Lowell. I am eager for my future destinations around this unique city.

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