The National Park in Blackstone Valley

The Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park was established on December 19th, 2014 as the 402nd park in the National Park system. The role of National Park in Blackstone Valley is to help preserve, protect, and interpret the nationally significant resources that exemplify the industrial heritage of the Blackstone River Valley.

National Park in Blackstone Valley

While the park has been legislatively established, there is still some work to do. First and foremost, the National Park Service (NPS) is working on drawing the Park boundary. The legislation states that the Park shall include:

• The Blackstone River State Park (Lincoln, RI)
• Old Slater Mill National Historic Landmark District (Pawtucket, RI)
• Slatersville Historic District (North Smithfield, RI)
• Ashton Historic District (Cumberland, RI)
• Whitinsville Historic District (Northbridge, MA)
• Hopedale Village Historic District (Hopedale, MA)
• The Blackstone River and tributaries of the Blackstone River
• The Blackstone Canal

Park Service staff is now meeting with State government agencies, non-profit organizations, municipalities, stakeholders, community members and volunteers to help define the boundary of the National Park in Blackstone Valley.

Even without a Park boundary in place, Park Rangers are already out and about at sites across the Blackstone Valley offering programs and meeting with visitors.

To learn more about Blackstone River Valley National Historical Park and the programs they offer, please visit the website.