Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)/Lowell

LOWELL, a city and one of the county-seats of Middlesex co., Mass., on the Merrimac river and the Boston and Maine and the New York, New Haven and Hartford railroads, 22½ miles N. W. of Boston, and contains the villages of Ayers City, Belvidere, Bleachery, Centralville, Highlands, Middlesex Village, and Pawtucketville. The city derives immense water power from the falls of the river, and is one of the largest cotton-manufacturing cities in the world. It also has large woolen, carpet, patent-medicine, furniture, tools, hydraulic-press, ammunition and hosiery manufactories and iron machine works. Among the charitable and educational institutions are St. John's Hospital, Lowell Hospital, Old Ladies' Home, St. Peter's Orphanage, Theodore Edson Orphanage, State Normal School, Lowell Textile School, and Rogers Hall School. The principal public buildings are the court house, the city hall, and several fine churches and school houses. There are many public squares; waterworks supplied from the river, thorough sewerage, daily, weekly and monthly periodicals, banks, and electric light and street railroad plants. Pop. (1910) 106,294; (1920) 112,759.