From The Library
Memorial Day Weekend Hours
In honor of the memory of fallen soldiers, we will be closed for Memorial Day weekend.
This includes closing early on Friday, May 26. Both O'Leary and Lydon libraries will be open from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Friday. We will be closed through Monday and re-open at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, May 30.
Before and After: A Look Into Lowell’s past!
The first picture in this post is a current Google Maps image from the intersection of Appleton and Central streets. Let’s journey back into time using archival photographs to see how this street corner used to look!
At first glance, the second photograph looks like just a sidewalk on Appleton Street in 1923. But a deeper look reveals the business life that called this street home. At the far back, we see T.A. Whelan's grocery store (312-316 Central Street) run by T. Arthur Whelan, advertising products like coffee tea, and molasses. Next, we see a cutlery store on 10 Appleton Street, owned by Havier “Xavier” L. Gonzales, where you could buy razors, clippers, knives, scissors, and skates. Finally, the shop window on the right is Dennis Murphy’s Steamship Agency, 18 Appleton Street, where you could buy tickets to take a steamship to places like Scotland, France, or Greece. If you look closely through the window you can see a display of brochures and pamphlets as well as a painting of a ship on roiling waves.