St. Joseph the Worker Shrine

The Oblates and the City of Lowell

As a lasting tribute to Father Andre Garin, OMI, first pastor of St. Joseph Church, the citizens of Lowell on October 22, 1896 dedicated a statue in his memory in front of St. Jean Baptist Church, his last building.  Over the years Oblates established and staffed new parishes for the ever-increasing Lowell population and these in turn furnished many priestly and religious vocations to the Oblate Congregation.  Oblates have also served as Lowell Police and Fire Department chaplains. 

Lowell no longer a mill city has not forgotten its past. Several of the former mills serve as active museums that are maintained be the Lowell National Historical Park.  To preserve its past history, St. Joseph Shrine opened The Oblate Historical Museum in 1995.  Among collectables from Oblate foreign missionaries the visitor can see a dramatic 5′ by 7′ painting of Lowell by renowned artist Wayne Morrell of Rockport, MA.