Poor Pawtucket. It was the proud home of the nation's first commercially successful water-powered cotton-spinning mill, making it the official birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution . But the city has yet to fully recover from the collapse of the textile industry that once anchored its economy. Today, many former mill buildings have fallen into decrepitude and downtown storefronts are vacant. Still, city officials have made a massive -- and successful -- push to persuade artists to live and work in Pawtucket, betting on the arts to reinvigorate the community as a whole. Already, the city has a thriving arts scene; from September through June, theatergoers flock to the three-year-old Gamm Theatre for works by playwrights from Bertolt Brecht to David Sedaris. It's also got Slater Memorial Park , a 200-acre public green space with recreation facilities, a fishing pond, a small farm, and even a watercolor society. And in baseball season, out-of-towners pour into McCoy Stadium to watch the PawSox.
Play
Families will find loads of kid-friendly activities at Slater Memorial Park (Route 1A, 401-728-0500, ext. 252) , an expansive green space with tennis courts, lawn bowling, picnic sites, and a pond stocked with pickerel, trout, and sunfish for recreational fishing. Inside the park is Daggett Farm, where several barnyard animals reside (including goats, sheep, and pigs) and where community flower and vegetable gardens grow.Also in the park is the restored Crescent Park Carousel, the gorgeous handiwork of Danish furniture maker Charles I.D. Looff, who also carved the famous carousel at New York's Coney Island. The Pawtucket carousel -- whose wooden creatures have jeweled bridles and real horsehair tails -- costs a bargain 25 cents for a three-minute ride, but call ahead because hours are limited (401-433-2828) .
And bring your bikes when you visit, because Pawtucket is on the route of the Blackstone River Bikeway (blackstoneriverbikeway.com) , a path that, once completed, will stretch 48 miles from Providence to Worcester.
Do
It's been many decades since giant quantities of cotton yarn were produced in Pawtucket, but the city's manufacturing history is still palpable. The best way to learn about it is at Slater Mill (67 Roosevelt Ave., 401-725-8638, slatermill.org ), where water power was first used to make the yarn. Visitors can tour the restored waterwheel and pulley system, chat with costumed interpreters, and watch spinning and weaving demonstrations at the nearby Sylvanus Brown House . Hours are limited in winter, so call ahead.Across the street, the Blackstone Valley Visitor Center (175 Main St., 401-724-2200 or 800-454-2882, tourblackstone.com) has exhibits, films, and an art gallery. And there's more history at Daggett House (16 Second St., Slater Memorial Park ), originally built in 1643 and rebuilt in 1685.
From May to October, you can take narrated riverboat tours of Pawtucket Harbor and the Blackstone River (call the Blackstone Valley Tourism Council, 800-454-2882, for details). Temperate weather also means baseball , when the minor league Pawtucket Red Sox play at McCoy Stadium (Ben Mondor Way, 401-724-7300, pawsox.com ). This year's home opener is on Friday, April 13.
Fuel
Pawtucket's most famous restaurant is the Modern Diner (364 East Ave. , 401-726-8390), established in 1941, which occupies a Sterling Streamliner railway car and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It serves all-day breakfasts and decadent weekend specials like mint M&M pancakes and Kentucky bourbon custard French toast.Across the street, the health-conscious Jac's Wraps (385 East Ave., 401-305-6770, jacswrapsny.com) serves its namesake wraps, as well as pizza, salad, and bagels .
Down the road, Blackstone Place (727 East Ave.) houses the vegetarian Garden Grille Cafe (401-726-2826, gardengrillecafe.com ), offering virtuous foods such as grilled asparagus wraps and tofu marble cheesecake; LJ's BBQ (727 East Ave., 401-305-5255, ljsbbq.com ), where you can clog your arteries with whiskey brisket sandwiches and smoked baby back ribs; and an Indian restaurant called Rasoi (401-728-5500, rasoi-restaurant.com ).
Galito Restaurant (214-216 Columbus Ave., 401-312-2200, galitorestaurant.com ) serves Portuguese food such as shrimp in garlic sauce, octopus stew, and traditional Portuguese soup made with cabbage, beans, and pasta.
Rest
There's one lone hotel in Pawtucket, the recently renovated, 138-room Comfort Inn (2 George St., 401-723-6700, comfortinn.com/hotel/RI010).The only other local option is the Brook Court Guest House (6 Brook Court, 401-724-5755), open in the spring and summer. It's a modest home on a dead-end street in a residential neighborhood not far from McCoy Stadium. Owner Maureen McNulty rents a suite with queen bed for $65 a night and a smaller room with twin beds for $45 a night, and serves a cold continental breakfast.
Or how about a "floating" bed-and-breakfast? A British-built canal boat called the Samuel Slater offers European-style overnight cruises on the Blackstone River (401-724-2200 or 800-454-2882, bedandbreakfastblackstone.com), as well as day cruises.
Party
The Sandra Feinstein-Gamm Theatre (172 Exchange St., 401-723-4266, gammtheatre.org) puts on five shows each season, and offers classes (introduction to acting, public speaking, and stage combat, to name a few) . Another place to watch live performances and hear musical groups is the Mixed Magic Theatre (171 Main St., 401-475-6675, theatremixedmagic.org) , an 85-seat venue in a former bank. Stone Soup Coffeehouse, one of the area's oldest and largest folk music venues, hosts performances every Saturday night at St. Paul's Church (50 Park Place, 401-457-7147, soup.org).Information about other events is available from the Arts Exchange (Pawtucket Armory, 172 Exchange St., 401-721-0723, arts-exchange.org) and the Pawtucket Arts Collaborative (280 Main St., 401-273-5367, pawtucketartscollaborative.org).
Spend
I wished I were a knitter after visiting E.J. Yarns (445 Benefit St., 401-722-4447), a cozy place brimming with knitting and crocheting supplies. In a nice community service, the store also collects hats, mittens, scarves, and blankets for charity.Ligafrica (180 Mineral Spring Ave., 401-725-1162, ligafrica.com) has an impressive selection of world music categorized by country . It also sells audio equipment and assorted curling irons, food processors, coffeemakers, luggage, and random mishmash.
For one-of-a-kind artworks, peruse the Rhode Island Watercolor Society (Armistice Boulevard, 401-726-1876, riws.org), in a restored boathouse overlooking a pond in Slater Memorial Park. One of the oldest watercolor societies in the country, it has gallery space and a small library, and its members include more than 300 artists .
