Donna Williams, Chair

Message from Commission Chair, Donna Williams
The Blackstone Valley is a special place created by nature, history, and hard-working people. The U. S. Congress has recognized our Valley as the "birthplace of America's Industrial Revolution." Here historic factories and farms, distinctive mill villages, rural communities, and urban centers are connected by shared history and the landscape created by the Blackstone River.

This historic Valley also is a place where families live, people work, and communities seek to prosper. Over the past twenty-four years, the Blackstone Commission has endeavored to expand on the valley’s interconnectedness by supporting programs that foster that sense of continuity and wholeness throughout the valley. This regional identity has strengthened our shared resolve to preserve our heritage so that present and future generations will understand the Valley’s significance in the development of our nation.

The Commissioners invite our Blackstone neighbors and visitors from out-of-town to explore the Blackstone Valley and discover extraordinary historic sites, preserved landscapes, the recreational greenway along the River, and people who live their heritage every day.