WOONSOCKET - On Labor Day, Monday, Sept. 1, the Museum of Work & Culture will host its 10th annual Labor Day Open House celebration. The day will be sponsored by the Rhode Island Labor History Society, Working Rhode Island and the Greater Woonsocket Labor Council. Admission is free all day, 9:30 a.m.-4 p.m.

The museum's signature event is in commemoration of Woonsocket's first Labor Day celebration in 1899, when Woonsocket and area workers marched and witnessed a parade and participated in daylong activities at Cold Spring Park. The occasion featured labor speeches and sports competition among the several mills of the Blackstone Valley.

Featured in the museum's Changing Gallery is a new exhibit titled "A Walk Through American Communities" showcasing photographs by David Amaral and Emilie Dubois.

According Amaral, "The exhibit is designed to create a street level experience reflecting both large and small urban centers. This exhibit cuts a crystalline cross-section of Americana." The Labor Day open house will be an opportunity to meet the photographers.

Also, throughout the day, the museum will feature costumed interpreters from its award-winning History Alive program. The interpreters are Irene Blais, Danielle DeRotto, Romeo Berthiaume, Jean O'Donnell and Jason Metivier. They will discuss working conditions and other labor issues.

The Navigant Credit Union Treasury of Life exhibit will also be open to visitors that day. People will have the opportunity to learn more about a unique way to preserve their family history.

The public is also invited to visit the Rhode Island Merci boxcar, located in the Lt. Georges Dubois Veterans Gallery. The railroad boxcar is one of 49 sent to the United States in 1949 as a thank-you from France for America's aid during and after World War II.

Also worth a visit is the museum's Eugene A. Peloquin Catholic School Archive containing information about Catholic education. The museum is currently accepting Catholic school memorabilia such as photographs and other printed materials. Eugene A. Peloquin and Albert O. Brunelle, museum Catholic School archivists, will be at the museum all day on Labor Day to accept donated materials.

In conjunction with the museum's annual appeal, a raffle will be held and drawn at the end of the day. The prize is a gourmet dinner for six, valued at $350, at the Pillsbury House on Prospect Street courtesy of Roger Bouchard, innkeeper, and chef Gary McLaughlin. Tickets will be sold throughout the day.

The Museum of Work & Culture is located at 42 South Main St.

For additional information, call 769-9675.