Help shape the future of the Greater Merrimack Valley – take our Visitors Survey or Regional Tourism Stakeholders Survey today!

3 Educational Things to Do in the Greater Merrimack Valley

Share this post:

Learning can be fun, and the Greater Merrimack Valley has no shortage of educational activities. Even when you’re on vacation, it’s never the wrong time to expand your mind. Museums, historical tours, and cultural performances are everywhere, ready to teach you something new and entertain you.

Whether you have kids or an adult that simply loves to learn, you have an abundance of educational options at your fingertips.

Discovery Museum

There’s no better way to learn than by getting hands-on! The Discovery Museum is great for families who love to learn together. All exhibits are hands-on, low-tech, and interactive so all anyone can enjoy them. Explore the properties of air, water, sound, light, color, and more as you learn and play.

Spark discovery outside of the classroom with immersive exhibits for all ages. Use tools in the da Vinci Workshop to tinker, design, build, and invent like the famous artist and engineer Leonardo di Vinci. Trick your eyes and mind at the Illusions Wall. Go on a nature adventure outdoors in the Discovery Woods. There is so much to see, do, and learn at the Discovery Museum.

Make sure to book your tickets in advance online.

Patrick J. Mogan Cultural Center

Lowell has an abundance of industrial history, from the textile factories to the boarding houses to the Lowell Mill Girls. Learn about them at the Patrick J. Mogan Cultural Center, a restored 1835 mill boarding house. Featuring the Mill Girls and Immigrants Exhibit, it provides an inside look at the lives of America’s premier factory workers; young women and immigrants.

Take a self-guided tour through the restored boardinghouse to discover the history of the mill girls and immigrants. Explore the kitchen, dining room, and bedrooms while learning about the inhabitants who called it home. A live audio program brings the conversations and experiences of the 19th-century women workers to life. Learn about the social and cultural worlds of Lowell’s diverse ethnic groups of the 1800s, from the first Irish laborers in the 1820s to the later Southeast Asian immigrants.

Fruitlands Museum

exterior view of frutilands museum

When the weather is nice, you’ll want to take a walk outdoors. Why not walk around 210 acres of pastoral land and explore diverse museums in one outing? That’s why you should visit Fruitlands Museum, which lets you explore a bygone Transcendentalist community turned museum. Enjoy the exhibits, hike the grounds, or attend seasonal events.

Explore art, history, and nature exhibits, along with historic house tours, and walking trails. The 210-acre landscape encompasses five collections on display in different houses. There’s the original Fruitlands Farmhouse, the Shaker Museum, and the Art Museum to explore. Celebrate the history of our nation’s indigenous people at the Native American Museum. The Wayside Visitor Center is a classroom, education, and exhibition space. All of them offer unique experiences that will teach you about the past and the present through stories, ideas, and objects on display.

After you’re done learning, step outside to walk the miles of trails or simply sit and appreciate the pastoral views the grounds offer.

This is all just the tip of the educational iceberg as far as what the Greater Merrimack Valley has to offer. Discover more tours, museums, and historic sites and start planning your next trip!

Recent Posts

More Posts

Skip to content