On September 7, 1992, Labor Day that year, the lead editorial was about Lowell and Lowell National Historical Park. It was tremendous exposure for the city and our history. Read the editorial here from the NYT archives, and get the paper if you want more.

Here’s how it begins:

Youngsters who are made to troop through America’s historic landmarks might reasonably conclude that in the past, rich was typical. Ordinary people are shown mainly as servants, or as slaves, in the sumptuous mansions and town houses that predominate in what are grandly called “heritage tours.”

Labor Day is a powerfully apt occasion to celebrate an exception: the Lowell National Historical Park, set in a gritty Massachusetts city. Here America’s working men and women have starring roles in the epic called “The Industrial Revolution.” A thundering score sets the mood, provided by 88 belt-driven looms in an unusual factory museum run by the National Park Service.