Every year Doors Open Lowell provides an inside look to nearly 30 buildings over two days. Look for old favorites this year as well as new additions to the roster of buildings.
As we reboot Doors Open Lowell this year, please note that the event will consist of just one day this year on Saturday, May 18.
No tickets or pre-registration is required. Admission is free.
Look for the blue Doors Open Lowell banners identifying participating sites.
Shuttle bus will run on a rolling basis between 1 pm - 4 pm on Saturday, May 18 between several sites.
The official Doors Open Lowell program guide will be online and also available at the Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, Mogan Cultural Center, and the Boott Cotton Mills Musuem.
Click HERE to download and print this year’s building roster and map.
THIS LISTING REPRESENTS THE DOORS OPEN LOWELL BUILDING ROSTER AS OF APRIL 16, 2024.
Saturday, May 18
10 am - 1 pm
1. Masonic Temple
79 Dutton Street
Built as Lowell’s Masonic Temple (1928), the building serves the same use today. Learn about the Masons and view several meeting rooms as you tour this Classical Revival structure.
2. Moody Street Feeder Gatehouse
Merrimack Street @ Merrimack Canal
Discover how this gatehouse (1848) regulated the flow of water through the underground Moody Street Feeder, connecting the Western Canal to the Merrimack Canal.
3. St. Anne’s Church
227 Merrimack Street
This Gothic Revival church (1825) is modeled after a medieval English church and is home to several Tiffany stained glass windows. Originally providing worship for the mill girls, it has been central to Lowell’s story for 200 years. Still in use today for worship, come see its deep-rooted past and help kick off its bicentennial.
4. UTEC
35 Warren Street
Now home to UTEC, the Greek Revival style former St. Paul’s Church (1839) is the oldest LEED Platinum certified green building in the world.
5. First United Baptist Church
99 Church Street
View the Greek Revival style First United Baptist Church (1826) that was the second church to be founded in Lowell.
6. Boston & Maine Railroad Depot
240 Central Street
This High Victorian Gothic style structure (1876) was originally built as a train depot but is more commonly known locally as the former Rialto Theater up until 1960 when it was converted into a bowling alley. Discover how it has been spectacularly rehabilitated by Middlesex Community College and is now home to the Richard & Nancy Donahue Family Academic Arts Center.
7. Counting House Lofts
109 Jackson Street
See how the former Countinghouse (ca. 1870) and Storehouse (ca. 1865) in the Hamilton millyard has been converted into residential use by the Winn Companies.
8. St. Patrick Church
282 Suffolk Street
Visit this Gothic Revival church (1853-1874) and learn more about past restoration projects and how the church continues to serve Lowell’s immigrant populations today. Designed by famed ecclesiastic architect Patrick Keely, St. Patrick is home to the oldest Catholic parish in the Merrimack Valley and third oldest in the Archdiocese of Boston. Doors Open XTRA
Saturday, May 18
10 am - 4 pm
9. Whistler House Museum of Art
243 Worthen Street
Built for the Lowell Machine Shop’s agent, this Federal/Greek Revival building (ca. 1825) is best known as the birthplace of artist James McNeil Whistler.
10. Gates Block
307 Market Street
The Gates Block (1881) originally housed a leather goods manufacturer as well as the manufactory for Moxie Nerve Food, a patent medicine that later became a soft drink. Explore the building’s rebirth as an arts center, home to the Arts League of Lowell, Van Gogh’s Gear Art Supplies, and three floors of artist studios.
11. National Streetcar Museum
25 Shattuck Street
The Queen Anne style Mack Building (1886) was originally home to W.A. Mack and Company, a manufacturer and dealer in cast iron stoves, architectural elements, fences, and other metal products. Browse exhibits about the influence of street railways on the development of our cities.
Saturday, May 18
11 am - 4 pm
12. Brush Art Gallery & Studios
256 Market Street
Browse these working artist studios and view current exhibits housed in this Italianate style mill building originally built by the Lowell Manufacturing Company in 1882, today the Market Mills complex.
Saturday, May 18
1 – 4 pm
13. Pollard Memorial Library
401 Merrimack Street
See the restored Richardsonian Romanesque Pollard Memorial Library (1893) and discover how the building continues to serve as Lowell’s library today.
14. Transfiguration Greek Orthodox Church
25 Fr. John Sarantos Way
Visit this Byzantine-style church (1956-1964) and discover its rich ornamentation including imported ceiling mosaics from Italy, iconography, and stained glass.
15. Tremont Yard
1 Tremont Place
Located beneath Jeanne D’Arc Credit Union, discover exposed historic subterranean waterpower features that were the site of pioneering turbine experiments undertaken by famed engineer James B. Francis in 1855. Doors Open XTRA
16. Tremont Gatehouse
Suffolk Street @ Western Canal
The Italianate style Tremont Gatehouse (1855) is one of the smallest on the Lowell canal system. Take a peek inside and see how it helped regulate water flow on this portion of the system.
17. The River Transformed Exhibit
Wannalancit Mill
Find out how engineers harnessed the waterpower of the Merrimack River to drive Lowell’s mills.
18. Spalding House
383 Pawtucket Street
The Georgian style Spalding House (1761) is the third oldest surviving house in Lowell. Learn about its history and the Lowell Parks & Conservation Trust’s preservation efforts. Doors Open XTRA
19. Coburn Hall *New in 2024*
850 Broadway Street
Built for the Lowell Normal School, a state teaching college founded in 1894, the Classical Revival Coburn Hall (1897) was named for Frank Coburn, the first dean of the school. Today part of UMass-Lowell, it underwent a major rehabilitation that was completed in early 2020, receiving an award from the Boston Society for Architecture for accessible design. Learn more about the building as well as its various 1930s era murals. Doors Open XTRA