The City of Lowell was incorporated in 1954 to acquire the sewer plant and water system developed by the U.S. government during construction of Lookout Point and Dexter dams. All city council meetings were held in the Grange Hall until a city hall was constructed 20 years later. The Grange Hall continued to be Lowell’s official polling place until ADA requirements caused the precinct to be moved to Lowell High School. The Grange Hall has been the center of community activities including Christmas Bazaars, Old Time Fiddlers’ jam sessions, quilt shows, community Halloween parties, scout meetings, birthday parties, sock hops, weddings, baby showers and funerals.
Amos’s son Grant reportedly operated a dental office in the General store he built about 1915 on the northwest corner of Hyland and Main Streets. Prior to 1958 Lowell had a pool hall and a roller rink. Newcomers can hardly imagine but during the period 1958 through 1962 Lowell supported a drug store, a liquor store, three cafes, five gas stations, two general stores, two barber shops, a tackle store, a shoe store, a hotel, a bulk fuel dealer, a wrecking yard, two tow truck businesses, an auto mechanic shop, a plywood patch manufacturing plant, and an American Legion Hall. Between 1964 and 1966 Fall Creek reservoir was constructed and flooded farms that previously grew pole beans, strawberries, corn and hay and pastured livestock. Although Lowell’s population today is double that of 1960, the loss of the area farms and sawmills due to dam construction and the loss of logging, sawmill and Forest Service jobs due to changing federal forest management policy has led our population to find work in Eugene and Springfield. Since they are commuting to the metro area they tend to also shop there. The resulting decline in local demand for goods and services in Lowell led to the closure of most of our retail businesses.
In the late 1970s a volunteer fire department district was organized in the Lowell-Fall Creek area, to replace the unorganized volunteer fire department we had previously. Our previous department was rather informal and was only equipped with a manually transported hose reel and a Pulaski, which were housed in a lean-to shed situated where the present LTD bus stop is located. Although our community dairy closed in the 70s one of the former bean fields is now a major blueberry plant producer. In 1992 the Hayden family opened a dental office here; a store-n-lock opened, and a hairdresser set up shop here. In 1994 the City of Lowell completed an industrial park on the northern edge of the community and recruited Tumac to move their high tech manufacturing plant and approximately 20 jobs to Lowell.
In about 1985 the bell tower was removed from the Grange hall, the schoolhouse-red cedar lap siding was covered with T1-11 and a comp roof was installed over cedar shingles. In 2005 the Grange Hall was recognized with designation as a state and federal historic site, which we hope will allow us to restore the bell tower and siding, level the kitchen floor and add a wheel chair ramp.