What does Lowell girl mean?

Answer 1

Francis Cabot Lowell established several mills at Waltham, Massachusetts, in 1813, and founded the town of Lowell in 1826. Lowell needed workers for his expanding mills so he sent out agents to scour the country side of rural New England for "farmer's daughters." The girls were boarded in secure, company supervised lodging houses in Lowell and received $3 for 70 hours of work in the mills per week. It may seem like low wages and long hours, but at the time it was a reasonable wage for women and the girls from the rural areas were used to hard, physical labor on the family farms. The girls were also schooled, attended church, and given a variety of educational and cultural programs. They usually started as "Lowell's girls" at 16 or 17 years old and soon would have a dowry large enough to attract a suitable husband.