Richard Padova Bread and Roses

During the summer, Richard Padova, who teaches in Northern Essex Community College’s Global Studies Department, indulges his passion for local history and steps from the classroom to the streets of Lawrence, where he leads locals and visitors on historic walking tours and a river tour.

Offered through the Lawrence Heritage State Park through the end of August, his tours include Narrated Merrimack River Boat Tour (Sundays, 1 to 3 p.m.); Bread & Roses Strike Walking Tour (Mondays, 10:30 a.m. to noon); Robert Frost Walking Tour, Tuesdays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.; Gateway to Lawrence Walking Tour (Wednesdays, 10 to 11:30 a.m.); Monuments & Martyrs Walking Tour (Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.).

All programs are free and open to the public, and the boat tour is the only tour that requires a reservation.

A native Lawrencian, Padova has been connected with Lawrence Heritage State Park since 2005 when he first began offering tours.  After years of research, he has a wealth of knowledge of Lawrence’s rich history and he enjoys sharing what he knows through his tours.

“The history of Lawrence as a planned industrial city is not widely known, but through my tours I hope to educate visitors not only about Lawrence’s past, but at the same time its present and future.”

In addition to his tours, Padova curated a special summer exhibit, celebrating the 30thanniversary of Lawrence Heritage State Park. Titled “Preservation and Placemaking: Lawrence Heritage State Park Turns 30”, the exhibit exploring the park’s history is on display on the 3rd floor gallery of the center which is located at One Jackson Street at Canal in Lawrence until August 15.

Padova has an MEd-School Counseling, and an MA in History. He is a graduate of Northern Essex Community College, Salem State College, Northeastern University. A longtime educator, he has been teaching history, geography and government courses at Northern Essex since January 2005.

Outside of the classroom, Padova serves on the Board of Directors of the Lawrence History Center and the Service Center of Greater Lawrence, Inc., and is also a member of the Andover Historical Society, the Friends of Memorial Hall Library (Andover), the Friends of Lawrence Heritage State Park, the American Political Items Collectors, the St. Alfio Society of Lawrence, the NECC Alumni Advisory Board, the Citizens’ Advisory Committee of the Lawrence Redevelopment Authority, and the Parish Pastoral Council at St. Augustine’s Church in Andover.

For more information on the tours or for group reservations, contact Lawrence Heritage State Park at 978 794-1655.

With campuses in Haverhill and Lawrence, Northern Essex Community College offers over 70 associate degree and certificate programs as well as hundreds of noncredit courses designed for personal enrichment and career growth.  More than 6,600 students are enrolled in credit associate degree and certificate programs on the Haverhill and Lawrence campuses; and another 3,400 take noncredit workforce development and community education classes on campus, and at businesses and community sites across the Merrimack Valley.  Northern Essex is the only state college located in the lower Merrimack Valley Region of Massachusetts. For more information, visit the website at www.necc.mass.edu.