The University of Massachusetts Lowell Celebrates 125th Anniversary

The University of Massachusetts Lowell is celebrating the 125th anniversary of its founding. The 125th anniversary web pages offer a timeline, histories, galleries of photographs, a short video, and other resources.

The history of the university reflects the history of two institutions founded one year apart in the late 1800s.

One, Lowell State Normal School was founded in 1894. The name change to Lowell State Teachers School in 1932 and then to Lowell State Teachers College in 1960 and Lowell State College in 1968.

Another institution, Lowell Textile School was founded in 1895. It became Lowell Textile Institute in 1928 and Lowell Technological Institute in 1953.

Lowell State College and Lowell Technological Institute then merged in 1975 to become the University of Lowell. The latest name change to University of Massachusetts Lowell occurred in 1991.

An institutional history published for the 100th anniversary, To Enrich and To Serve: The Centennial History of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, written by Mary H. Blewett and Christine McKenna and published in 1995, is available at no charge through the Internet Archive or used copies can be purchased through Abe Books.

A more recent book was published in 2012 by Arcadia Publishing, University of Massachusetts Lowell as part of its College History Series. You can read reflections of the author, Marie Frank, PhD, "Our 125 Years: Mergers, Murals and Modern Dance," posted by the university.

The Center for Lowell History offers an extensive array of historical resources for the university and surrounding region.