Started the day off feeding the chickens in my work boots and forgot to change into traveling shoes until Jim called out…”Do you want your sandals?” I do drive better in the sandals. The Bobs and Jim will watch the grass grow on the farm as I travel to explore teach and network with fellow fiber enthusiasts.

Day 1 up and off by 6:00 am heading for Lowell, MA to explore the Historical National Park of Textile Mills and the New England Quilt Museum. A nine hour trip according to GPS.  But with wind damage reported in Wilkes-Barre, PA I decided to go east into NJ on I78 until there was a back up around Allentown, PA where I took Rt22 on into NJ and finally I80 to 287N over the Newburgh bridge crossing the Hudson and into CT. There is a lot of money being spent on roadwork through the cities of Danbury and Hartford. AND lots of traffic. No rerouting via GPS so in the end 9 hours became 13.

Booked a room at UMass Lowell Inn and Conference Center from an online search of hotels in the area. I am a graduate of UMass Boston so felt an allegiance to the site. Perfect location for my reason to visit. My room overlooks the Pawtucket canal at the waterfalls. Recommend a textile conference at the Inn …. maybe a future ATHA bi-ennial even? Great for touring the park, mills, and history besides location outside of Boston.

Walked around some as the sun was setting, plan to get up early and explore. Day 2 report on the two museums.

The Middlesex Mills was the largest woolen mill in Lowell, built in 1831, shutdown one hundred years ago in 1918 and demolished in 1956, the UMass Inn is built on the original site. Another brick building. This time with more than females working and living inside. I wrote a paper in college about the young women recruited to work in the mills and the work laws that evolved from their long hours, low wages, and living away from home. The park experience is something multi-generations should experience together. Take the canal boat, visit the mill, dormitory housing, and visitors center and try to put yourself in the shoes of those workers.