|
Links:
Bike
Blackstone
Paddling Club
State Parks &
Recreation
|
|
The American Industrial Revolution began in the Blackstone Valley where its
river, utilized for transportation as well as water power, was a driving
force behind the rapid growth of industrialization in a formerly agrarian based
economy. Sam Slater came from England and changed the course of our
Nation's history as he replicated England's coveted Arkwright system in
Pawtucket in 1793. Yet, this region and greater Worcester County and northern
Rhode Island have stories from even earlier times and throughout history that
significanlty shaped America. The Blackstone River Valley
National Heritage Corridor
was designated in 1986 by Congress to recognize the Blackstone Valley's
national's significance in early American history and also to revitalize its
resources, including America's Heritage hardest working river, the Blackstone.
The Blackstone River
drops over 400 feet from Worcester south to Pawtucket - creating a wonderful
experience along oft unparalleled landscapes of industrial, urban, suburban and
very rural communities.
The
Blackstone Valley towns are each unique, yet they share many common threads
filled with strong character and traditional New England values of hard
work, thriftiness and innovation. The paternalistically shaped mill villages can
still be seen, as can the rural farmlands even with the enormous, new growth the
Valley has absorbed in the last few decades. The Valley ranges from Rhode
Island's vibrant city of
Providence
at the southern end to
24 communities
north to
Worcester,
mostly shaped around the traditional N.E. Congregational Church
common.
Worcester, the second largest city in Massachusetts is at the northern point of
the Blackstone River. The Blackstone canal are planned for an aesthetic
re-opening along the corridor attracting many visitors after years of neglect.
In 1999, the
United States Congress named the
National Heritage
Corridor in honor of the late United
States Senator John H. Chafee of Rhode Island, who had co-sponsored legislation
creating this region in 1986.
SPECIAL
PLACES:
Kelly House
/
Purgatory
/
Waters Farm
/
Manchaug
/
Willard Clock
/
Asa Waters
/
Hassanamessit
/
Upton Beehive Chamber
/
The Forge
/
Chestnut Mtg House
/
Quaker Mtg House
/
St. Ann's Arts & Cultural Center
/
Old Armories
/
Firsts
/
Dorr Rebellion
/
Pascoag Riverwalk
/ Daniels Farm /
Blackstone Gorge /
Millville Lock
/
Ironstone School
/
St Francis Orphanage
/
Indian Burial Ground
/
Hassanamessit
/
Slater Mill
/
Blackstone Canal
/
Lime Rock
/ St Brigid's Church /
Vietnam Memorial
/
EN Jenckes General
Store /
Lookout Rock
/
RI Outdoor Sculpture
/
Worcester Markers
/ Vaillaincourt Folk
Art / Spaightwood Galleries / Daniels Farm /
Walking Tours
/ Grafton Common / Douglas Hoop Barn /
SPECIAL
EVENTS:
Dragonboat Races
/
Footsteps in History
/ Autumnfest / Octoberfest /
Greenway Challenge
/
Maple Sugaring
/
Races /
Canalfest /
Indian Powwow /
Grafton Arts Festival
/
Colonial Muster
/ Trades Fair / Car
Cruises / Fall Farm Days / Celtic Festival /
Chain of Lights /
But the Valley's
history, attractions and recreational fun go much deeper than the American
Industrial revolution. Its ancestors helped shaped the Nation. Enjoy some
of these unique, yet authentic stories and characters of the past:
Shays Rebellion -
Lydia Taft
-
Indian Burial Ground
- Ironstone School -
Roger Williams
Chestnut Meeting House -
King Philip's War
-
Mumma Dudley -
Nipmucs
Vaillancourt Folk Art
-
Upton's Hidden Treasure
-
John Hazeltine
Bud Gurney & Dorothea
Waters -
Stanley Woolen Mill
-
Al Consigli
A Short Blackstone Canal History
-
Winter's Gift
-
Colonial
Gardens
Elizabeth Buffum Chace
-
Dairy Farms
The Ghost of Tarkiln
-
Gun Making in the Valley
-
Not Just About Casinos
NATURE Articles:
Gray Fox
Lost Grandeur
Hibernation
Birding
ACEC
Land Trusts
Check back
Browse our site and
enjoy by clicking on the subjects to the left or above.
|
