Learning in Lowell: A Retrospective on the 2017 Massachusetts Historic Preservation Conference

The 2017 Massachusetts Historic Preservation Conference was held on September 22 at the UMass Lowell Inn and Conference Center. By all accounts it was a successful day, with great educational sessions, discussion panels and of course, amazing tours of Lowell.

This conference was by no means a one person or organization effort and huge thanks are owed to our partners at the Lowell National Historical Park and the Lowell Historic Board. We also have to extend great thanks to Lisa Craig, our Keynote Speaker for discussing climate change and the impacts of natural disasters on historic resources. And also thank you to our sponsors for their financial support and to our volunteers for giving generously of your time.

The day was full of sessions, tours, discussion and sharing. With the use of our #MHPC2017 we were able to follow attendees on their tours, learning from projects and efforts all over Lowell. And who can say no to a lunchtime canal cruise, courtesy of our friends at the National Park.

With the conference behind us we have had a chance to review our survey results and are using them as we begin to brainstorm session ideas, themes and (most importantly) locations for 2019. Some locations that were posed were Boston, Cape Cod, Holyoke, New Bedford, Springfield, Sturbridge and also Plymouth (hello 2020...)

We encourage you to reach out to us with your thoughts and ideas as we begin to formulate the next conference. Even though this conference is every other year, we are working on hosting more focused regional workshops and educational gatherings throughout 2018.

Thank you for a great 2017 MHCP and we look forward to announcing our 2019 location next year!