Waltham‑Lowell System and the Lowell Mills (1814–1860)

1. Boston Associates organize the Boston Manufacturing Company

   Jan 1, 1813Labels: Francis Cabot, Boston Associates, Boston Manufacturing

   • Britannica
   • Waltham Museum

2. Waltham’s integrated power mill begins producing cloth

   Dec 1, 1814Labels: Waltham Mill, integrated mill

   • Britannica
   • BU Open

3. Tariff of 1816 supports domestic textile manufacturing

   Apr 27, 1816Labels: Tariff of, James Madison

   • Tariff 1816
   • Britannica

4. Francis Cabot Lowell dies; expansion planning continues

   Aug 10, 1817Labels: Francis Cabot

   • Britannica
   • NPS Lowell

5. Boston Associates select Pawtucket Falls for a new mill city

   Jan 1, 1822Labels: Pawtucket Falls, Merrimack River

   • Lowell History
   • Merrimack Mfg

6. Merrimack Manufacturing Company starts operations in Lowell

   Jan 1, 1823Labels: Merrimack Manufacturing, Lowell Mills

   • Merrimack Mfg
   • Lowell History

7. Lowell is incorporated as a town

   Mar 1, 1826Labels: Lowell Massachusetts

   • UMass Lowell
   • Lowell Library

8. Lowell women stage the 1834 “turn-out” over wage cuts

   Feb 1, 1834Labels: Lowell women, 1834 turn-out

   • Mill Girls
   • NPS Lowell

9. Boott Cotton Mills is incorporated, expanding Lowell’s mill network

   Jan 1, 1835Labels: Boott Cotton

   • MA Archives
   • Boott Mills

10. Lowell receives a city charter as industrial growth accelerates

    Apr 1, 1836Labels: Lowell Massachusetts

    • Lowell History
    • Lowell Library

11. Lowell women strike again in 1836 over boarding costs

    Oct 1, 1836Labels: Lowell women, boardinghouses

    • NPS Strikes
    • NPS Lowell

12. Lowell Offering begins publishing worker writing

    Jan 1, 1840Labels: Lowell Offering, mill workers

    • Lowell Offering
    • Voice Industry

13. Lowell Female Labor Reform Association organizes for ten-hour day

    Jan 1, 1845Labels: Lowell Female, ten-hour movement

    • NPS LFLRA
    • History Matters

14. LFLRA uses the Voice of Industry to amplify labor reform

    Jan 1, 1846Labels: Voice of, LFLRA

    • NPS LFLRA
    • Voice Industry

15. By the mid-1850s, immigrant labor reshapes the Lowell system

    Jan 1, 1855Labels: immigrant labor, Lowell mills

    • NPS Boarding
    • UMass Lowell

16. By 1860, the early Waltham-Lowell model is fading

    Jan 1, 1860Labels: Waltham-Lowell system

    • NPS Boarding
    • Lowell History