09:41 AM EDT on Monday, August 29, 2005

BY CYNTHIA NEEDHAM
Journal Staff Writer

WOONSOCKET -- Admit it, historical museums can get a little dull.

Journal photo / Steve Szydlowski

A mannequin portrays a worker at a loom at the Museum of Work & Culture, in Woonsocket. The museum tells the harsh but inspiring story of working-class French Canadians who spent much of their lives in the Blackstone Valley's textile mills.

All those dead presidents and military generals and tales of heroism are enough to leave the average joe a bit weary.

So for most of us, the idea of visiting someplace called the Museum of Work & Culture seems downright mind-numbing.

Work? On a Saturday afternoon?

It might not be what you expect.

The Museum of Work & Culture finds the extraordinary in the absolutely ordinary, telling the harsh but inspiring tale of working-class French Canadians who came to the Blackstone Valley's textile mills.

For many Rhode Islanders, it's a personal story -- a saga of parents and grandparents who toiled long hours at the looms to carve out a better life for their families.

By 1930, 75 percent of city wage earners worked in the mills, or in some related industry, according to a Woonsocket Chamber of Commerce report from that year.

"If you're from northern Rhode Island, this is your history, warts and all," said Raymond Bacon, a museum historian and site manager.

And even if you're not, a visit to the Museum of Work & Culture can feel a lot like a trip through the family photo albums.

The self-guided tour starts on a simulated mill floor, and in many ways chronicles America's industrial revolution. The exhibit is narrated through oral histories recorded by mill workers. They share stories of the deafening noise ("I had ringing in my ears for years and years") and severe heat and humidity.

From there, visitors spend a day in the lives of Woonsocket's immigrant workers, from church to union meetings to labor negotiations to the bosses' office. There's even a replica of a 1929 parochial classroom, complete with antique desks that let visitors experience mill life though the eyes of its youngest workers.

In the mundane details, something amazing emerges.

"In their own way, these people were heroes," said Bacon, whose father spent decades in Woonsocket's French Worsted Mill. Bacon, 68, worked for a time at the same mill before going on to Providence College and eventually to teach history at Woonsocket High School.

"We stand on their shoulders. We're here today doing what we're doing because of them," he added. "When my father was alive, he used to say 'you have to get out of the mills and go get a job where you can get out every once in a while and go see a baseball game.' "

For years, New Englanders relied on parents to tell these tales. In 1997, the museum opened, creating a permanent home for such stories. But Bacon acknowledges that, as time passes, fewer firsthand accounts remain, making the Museum of Work & Culture that much more important.

Now in its eighth year, the museum, which is owned and operated by the Rhode Island Historical Society, faces the same challenge that confronts most of its kind: how to evolve without compromising the original mission. Officials say they've thought about diversifying the museum's story to include the history of other ethnic groups that populated the Blackstone Valley during the industrial era.

"Italians, Poles, Hispanics. They're part of our story now," Bacon said. "How we'll go about doing that, I don't know, but that's definitely one of our aims."

Education is another of the museum's goals. Already, about a quarter of its visitors are children. A new joint agreement between the museum and the Blackstone River Valley Heritage Corridor invites school groups on a daylong tour of Woonsocket, including a ride on the Blackstone Valley Explorer riverboat and a guided walk through the city's historic downtown, on top of a visit to the museum.

"I think many Rhode Islanders still haven't had a chance to see this place," said Anne Conway, another Museum of Work & Culture site manager. A visitor's log inside the museum shows entries from tourists from as far away as France, but some locals never think to visit a museum so close to home.

To encourage newcomers, the museum will hold its annual open house on Labor Day, one week from now. And really, what better day to learn about the lives of mill workers?

Admission will be free all day. Events will include a book sale, a raffle and several short historical plays to be performed throughout the afternoon.

"This museum is the voice of a people," Conway said. "It's the story of people who left behind a life and came here to find a better one. One of our missions is to preserve this history for younger generations."

Summer may be drawing to a close on the Blackstone, but museum officials say they hope between that last ear of sweet corn and dip in the ocean, you'll find some time to make a trip to Woonsocket and learn a bit about their history.

After all, it might be your own.

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How to get there

From Providence and points south: take Route 95 north to Route 146 north.

From Route 95 south: Exit onto Route 295 to Route 146 north (note: there are no exit numbers).

From both directions, stay on Route 146 north to the Route 104 exit. Follow Route 104 north to South Main Street. Take a right onto South Main Street and follow for one-half mile. The museum will be on your right. There is additional free parking across the street. The address is 42 S. Main St., Woonsocket.

The museum's hours are: weekdays 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sundays 1 to 4 p.m.

Admission: adults/$6; seniors/$4; students/$4; children under age 10 are admitted free with adult. Free for Rhode Island Historical Society Members.

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Events this week

FRIDAY 1 to 2:30 p.m. Fridays Timeline Trekkers. Children ages 5 to 10 learn about local wildlife and history through stories, arts, crafts and exploration. Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, River Bend Farm Visitor Center, 287 Oak St., Uxbridge, Mass. Call (508) 278-7604 to register.

SATURDAY 1 to 4 p.m. Historic Great Road Open House. The Great Road effort is known as "Travel Three Hundred Years in Three Miles." It features the 1810 Hearthside house (open second Saturday of month), the 1687 Eleazer Arnold House (open fourth Saturday of the month), the 1649 Valentine Whitman House (open the first Saturday of the month) the 1704 Friends Meeting House (open third Saturday of the month), the 1870 William Hannaway Blacksmith Shop (open Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon for demonstrations and classes), as well as the Wilbur Kelly House in Quinnville, which is open seven days a week. No charge for tours; donations encouraged. Contact Friends of Hearthside (401) 726-0597.

2 to 3:30 p.m. Millville Lock Walking Tour. Hike with a National Park Service volunteer from the John H. Chafee Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor along the old New York and New England rail trail. Visit the best preserved lock along the Blackstone Canal and learn about the role of the canal and railroad. Continue to the Triad Bridge overlooking the Blackstone River and hear about the Grand Trunk Railroad, the rail line that sank with the Titanic. Most of the trail is flat but sturdy walking shoes, drinking water, insect repellent and a camera are advised. Meet at the parking lot across from St. John's Church, Hope Street, Millville, Mass. Contact Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, (401) 762-0440.

SUNDAY 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. British Tea Tour along the Blackstone River aboard British Canal Boat, leaving from Central Falls Landing, Broad Street at Madeira Avenue, Central Falls. All seats $17.50, but this Sunday is sold out. Call for alternative dates. Reservations required. Contact Blackstone Valley Tourism Council, (401) 724-2200.

1 to 4 p.m. Blackstone Valley Explorer Thundermist Tour. Discover the cultural heritage of the French and Franco-Canadians who came to settle in Woonsocket in the 19th and early 20th centuries to work the mills and factories in this 45-minute tour aboard a 49-passenger tour boat. Public tours leaving from Market Square Landing, across from the Museum of Work & Culture, Woonsocket, at 1, 2, 3, 4 p.m. Tickets: $7 for adults, $6 for seniors and children. A discount of $1 will be offered to anyone with a receipt from the Museum of Work & Culture. Advance reservations assure boarding at a desired time. Call the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council at (401) 724-2200.

3:30 p.m. Sunday Concerts on the Canal. Bring a lawn chair or blanket. Picnic area with grills available. River Bend Farm Visitor Center, Blackstone River & Canal Heritage State Park, 287 Oak St., Uxbridge, Mass. (508) 278-7604.

MONDAY 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Annual Labor Day Open House at the Museum of Work & Culture, Market Square, 42 S. Main St., Woonsocket. Sponsored by Working Rhode Island and the Rhode Island Labor History Society, admission is free all day.

Museum's annual signature event is a reminder of Woonsocket's first Labor Day celebration on Sept. 4, 1899, when thousands of onlookers watched the Wage Earners parade wind through the streets of the city to Cold Spring Park for an afternoon of picnicking, games and speeches. At 11 a.m., various labor groups have been invited to meet at River Island Park for a traditional labor rally. Speaking program will be hosted by Nick Palazzo, Rhode Island Labor History Society president. Featured speaker will be Scott Molloy, URI labor history professor. Free refreshments follow the speaking program.

Another highlight will be a presentation of one of the museum's popular Living History plays. The play, Mike Sullivan at Finlay's Corner, to be presented on the mill floor, is a solo performance by actor and storyteller Erik Eckilson. His character, Mike Sullivan, appearing in 1930, will recall the pressing issues of the day, one year after the beginning of the Great Depression. The play will be performed several times during the open house. Contact Museum of Work & Culture (401) 769-9675.

SOURCES: Blackstone Valley Tourism Council Web site www.tourblackstone.com and The Museum of Work & Culture.

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Keep up with the Summer on the Blackstone series, at:

http://projo.com/blackstonesummer