Falmouth Museums on the Green, Falmouth

The Falmouth Museums on the Green, owned and operated by the Falmouth Historical Society, is a two-acre campus that has been serving the residents and visitors of Falmouth since 1900. The Historical Society itself is the oldest such institution on Cape Cod. One of the most popular sites in Falmouth for visitors, it contains the 1790 Dr. Francis Wicks House—a magnificent Federalist-period residence which demonstrates what life was like for an affluent doctor in the late 18th and early 19th centuries; the recently-restored 1730 Conant House—used for exhibits and Historical Society office space; the Hallett Barn Visitors’ Center—rebuilt in 2002 on the site of an original barn and used a welcoming point for those coming to Falmouth as well as the “Whaling Wives Gift Shop”; the Colonial Gardens—showing off plantings, such as a boxwood tree, that go back to the days prior to the American Revolution, and maintained by the Falmouth Garden Club; Memorial Park—a tranquil place of refuge that is open to all visitors looking for relaxation; and the recently-opened (2012) Cultural Center—a superb, 3600 square foot structure used for public and private programs and events, public restrooms, kitchen facilities, and as a repository for archival collections to preserve Falmouth’s past. The Museums also have an extensive research library and allow visitors and members to use it for investigation and examination, genealogy, and inquiries about Falmouth and Cape Cod history.

There’s so much to explore at the Museums on the Green, run by the Falmouth Historical Society. Our beautiful two-acre campus features two 18th century homes, an early 20th century reconstructed barn, a vibrant Cultural Center, Colonial gardens, 2 historic cannons, stocks, and a four-seater outhouse. Each building and exhibit tell a story about those who have lived in and visited this seaside community. Take your time as you travel back in time. Let’s make history together! The Hallett Barn was rebuilt in 2003 using the post and beam construction typical of old barns. Watch a short video about the Museums on the Green and Falmouth, tour the current exhibit, then shop for Cape-inspired mementos at the gift shop named for the adventuresome sea captains’ wives who set sail on numerous whaling voyages. Travel through time as you stroll through the stateliest house on the Village Green. Once home to two doctors, a whaling captain, and three generations of his family, it is fill with family artifacts and heirlooms. Built in 1790 for Dr. Francis Wicks and his family, in 1827 it became the home of Dr. Aaron Cornish. Inside the home office used by both doctors are many fascinating medical instruments. In 1844, Captain Warren Nye Bourne purchased the home for his wife Julia and daughter Sophia. For the next eighty-eight years, three generation of his family lived and died here. In her 1932 will, the captain’s granddaughter (and namesake), Julia Warren Swift Wood, left the home to the Falmouth Historical Society. The Society obtained this property from the Conant Family in 1966. The building, which also houses our Research Library, archives and staff offices, was restored and remodeled in 2016. It is the oldest existing home on the Village Green. See how life has changed over the years through a self-guided tour of our exhibit. Discover a 1939 jukebox which can still play records on occasion, a lifeboat fixture from the luxury liner Andrea Doria, which sank off Nantucket in 1956, and a cannonball that might have been fired from the HMS Nimrod on Falmouth during the War of 1812. And take a video side trip to the 1940s. In September 1941, just months before the United States entered World War II, volunteers from the local Kiwanis Club canvassed town, filming people doing everyday things. Watch video highlights from “A Day in the Life” in Falmouth here. Also be sure to visit the new “Age of Whaling” exhibit, which features items from our scrimshaw collection.

The Falmouth Museums on the Green contain a treasure trove of stories and artifacts that tell the story of the town of Falmouth, Massachusetts. The museums overlook the Village Green where members of the Colonial militia practiced in the 1700s and sea captains built their homes. Two 18th-century houses display period furniture, fine art, textiles and rotating exhibits that provide a glimpse into the town’s rich historic past.

The Dr. Francis Wicks House is a two-story residence constructed circa 1790. The Falmouth Historical Society was gifted the house in 1932 and through research and renovations uses the house to help interpret the history of Falmouth and its people. BCA completed an Historic Structure Report that included documenting the architectural history of the building through available archival research, analysis of existing building conditions, paint analysis, treatment recommendations, a prioritization timeline for anticipated work, and projection of probable costs.***PH***