Many of the facilities at Lowell National Historical Park are historic and were built before current accessibility standards were set. The terrain at our park sites can contain many uneven surfaces and may provide difficulty for visitors with mobility issues or visual impairments.
If you require special accomodations for your visit to the park we invite you to email us.
For more information, please check out the information below or give us a call at (978)-970-5000.
Accessibility at Lowell National Historical Park
Select from the options below for more information about how to make the most of your visit to the Mill City!
The park offers a number of wheelchair accessible sites. In addition, a wheelchair is located and available for loan at the NPS Visitor Center (246 Market Street) and at the Boott Cotton Mills Museum (115 John Street). There is no charge for using one of the Park's on-site wheelchairs.
Service dogs are welcomed throughout the Park, on tours and in all facilities. For more information about assistance animals, please refer to the NPS service dog guidelines.
Note that vehicles that display disability license plates or a hanging placard may park at no cost in any designated parking space within the City of Lowell.
If you require special accomodations for your visit to the park, we invite you to send us a request by email.
Accessible sites include:
Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center, 246 Market Street at Shattuck Street, Lowell MA.
Accessible parking spaces are provided in the Hamilton Canal Innovation District (HCID) parking garage at 350 Dutton Street, Lowell. The 900ft walk from this accessible exit of the garage to the Visitor Center includes travel over brick and concrete on sidewalks with curb cuts and an accessible ramp. Take a ticket, use any of the accessible parking spaces in the garage, and bring that ticket to the Lowell National Historical Park Visitor Center or Boott Cotton Mills Museum to have the ticket validated for free parking. Accessible on-street parking spaces may be available along Market or Shattuck Streets.
Boott Cotton Mills Museum, 115 John Street, Lowell MA.
There is no public parking immediately adjacent to the Boott Cotton Mills Museum. Accessible parking spaces are provided in the city parking garage at 75 John Street. This is located approximately 665 feet from the accessible entrance to the Boott Cotton Mills Museum and includes brick sidewalks, curb cuts, trolley crossings and bridge crossing. Visitors with groups may use an accessible drop off in front of the Boott Cotton Mills Museum. The garage has a height limitation of 6' 8" for vehicles.
Mogan Cultural Center, 40 French Street, Lowell MA. Accessible parking spaces are provided on Kirk Street north of French Street and in the city parking garage at 75 John Street. This is located approximatley 530 feet from the accessible entrance to the Mogan Cutlural Center and includes brick sidewalks, curb cuts and street crossings. Visitors traveling with groups may use an accessible drop off in front of the Mogan Cultural Center.
Boat Tours:
Lowell National Historical Park tour boats are not wheelchair accessible for boarding. However, there is a ramp and floating dock that is wheelchair accessible for visitors and who may be able to board the tour boats with assistance. Visitors may stow their folded chairs in a nearby secure location. Boarding boats requires climbing 3 steps up and 3 steps down.
For questions, please call (978) 970-5000. Reservations in advance are made on Recreation.gov.
Trolleys:
Three of Lowell National Historical Park's trolleys are accessible to wheelchair users, with one secure wheelchair space per vehicle. When making reservations for trolley related programs, please inform us if your party includes a visitor that uses a wheelchair so that we may reserve spaces.
Visitors with mobility disabilities may also access the trolley, but will be required to climb two high ladder steps (12 inches) using the available handrails.
Please call (978) 970-5000 for more information.
Lowell National Historical Park provides a variety of services to accommodate people who are Deaf and hard of hearing.
If you require special accomodations for your visit to the park, we invite you to send us a request by email.
Multimedia Presentations:
All Lowell National Historical Park multimedia presentations are captioned for the deaf and visitors who are Deaf or hard of hearing.
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Lowell: The Continuing Revolution - Visitor Center, open-captioned
The Worker's Remember Series - Boott Cotton Mills Museum Second Floor, open-captioned
Tours:
Lowell National Historical Park offers a variety of services at all times on park tours for visitors who are Deaf or hard of hearing.
Assisted listening devices as well as a portable microphone and speaker system are available upon request at our Visitor Center.
Graphic safety guides for boat and trolley tours.
Proximity seating on boats and trolleys is available to aid in hearing and/or lip reading.
In addition, American Sign Language (ASL) Interpretation may be arranged for attending tours with fourteen (14) days advanced notice, assuming ASL interpreter resources are available. Please call (978) 970-5000 or use the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339 to request a Sign Language Interpreter. Or, complete and submit the Request for a Sign Language Interpreter Form. If a Sign Language Interpreter is requested and you are unable to make your visit to Lowell National Historical Park, a 48-hour notice of cancellation is requested.
For specific questions please call 978-970-5000. To reserve tours, use Recreation.gov.
Follow up:
We want to do the best we can to ensure that your experience at Lowell National Historical Park is gratifying. Please feel free to submit comments and suggestions by calling 978-970-5000, using the Federal Relay Service, or by e-mail.
If you require special accomodations for your visit to the park, we invite you to send us a request by email.
The Lowell National Historical Park brochure and Park maps are available in Braille at the Visitor Center.
Tactile objects and representations of objects can be used on tours, in the Boott Cotton Mills Museum, and in the Mogan Cultural Center to aid with interpretive experiences with advanced notice.
Large print scripts of all Lowell National Historical Park multimedia programs are available at the Visitor Center front desk upon request.
Multimedia Presentations:
Lowell: The Continuing Revolution - Visitor Center; audio described.
The Worker's Remember Series - Boott Cotton Mills Museum Second Floor; oral testimony from former Lowell textile factory workers.
Access Pass
U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are permanently disabled are eligible for the Interagency Access Pass. This free, lifetime admission pass is valid at National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, US.. Fish and Wildlife Service, US.. Forest Service, Bureau of Reclamation, and Army Corps of Engineers sites.
Passes are available at Lowell National Historical Park, at the Visitor Center (246 Market Street) and at the Boott Cotton Mills Museum (115 John Street).
The Access Pass may be issued to U.S. citizens or permanent residents of any age that have been medically determined to have a permanent disability (does not have to be a 100% disability) that severely limits one or more major life activities.
A permanent disability is a permanent physical, mental, or sensory impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, such as caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working.
The pass generally allows free admission to any federal land that charges and entrance fee. The pass is good for a whole carload, if the property charges by the carload, or if charged by individual, the pass allows the passholder and three guests free entry.
The pass generally does not apply to special tours, programs, and some museums, such as a boat tour, bus tour, cave tour, etc.
For more information on the access pass, including ways to procure a pass by mail, please visit the Access Pass information page at the U.S. Geological Survey. Note that while the access pass is free in-person, a processing fee will be applied if purchased online. For information about acquiring an access pass in-person at Lowell National Historical Park, refer to our page on Fees & Passes.
