Discover

[ image by Jim McElholm-Single Source Inc. ]

The Industrial Revolution changed the landscape of the Blackstone Rver Valley and transformed life in America. You can discover the history in the land, if you learn what to look for. The manufacturing system left behind many vestiges and clues to the past – signs that can be seen, heard and felt today.

These vestiges include mill villages, roads and trails, dams and mill ponds, agricultural and natural landscapes, and ethnic or Yankee traditions in neighborhoods, languages, and foods, plus scenes recalling the Age of industry.

Special places all over America have been lost to placeless suburban sprawl. Today, imaginative efforts are underway to protect the distinctive places remaining in the Blackstone River Valley. On a visit to the region you can look for the many distinctive features that make this a special landscape and once you identify them in one place, you will soon see them along rivers and roads throughout the Blackstone River Valley.
		[ image by Jim McElholm- Single Source Inc. ]

You can begin to see how this heritage landscape was shaped with an understanding of The History and the Nature and Environment of the Valley. Use the many tangible resources throughout the Valley as a guide to Education about its many varied natural and cultural resources. And find out more about The River, it’s unique history as “America’s Hardest Working River” and how to enjoy it as a recreational resource or help us continue the effort to improve the water quality.