Museums on the Green: Falmouth Historical Society

By -
A black, white, and dark blue striped header image with the text Museums on the Green: Falmouth Historical Society

I have a few tales remaining from my Cape Cod adventure back in August 2024. On my final day, I visited Museums on the Green, the property of Falmouth Historical Society in Falmouth, MA. While steady rain and lack of signage initially derailed my visit, I had an enjoyable tour upon finding the visitor center. The property includes several historic buildings along with ample lawns and gardens. It is conveniently located near the downtown area, allowing for relaxing strolls in sunnier weather.

A three-story Cape Cod style house with shingle siding and green shutters connected to a long addition. A three story Cape Cod style house with shingle siding and green shutters connected to a long addition including an overhang. Sign Reading Conant House c. 1730, Exhibits, Main Offices, Research Library & Archives. The logo of Museums on the Green is at the top of the sign.
A green wooden sign with white decorative trim reading Falmouth Museums on the Green Home of the Falmouth Historical Society A long green wooden sign low to the ground reading Falmouth Historical Society Memorial Park Includes pins, ticket stubs, booklets, pennants, and patriotic jewelry

I parked at what turned out to be the backlot of the museum, which has plenty of parking in at least two locations. I started with a temporary exhibit containing memorabilia from World War II before stumbling into the connected Hallett Barn Visitor Center. This Cape style building was remade in 2003 using the historical post-and-beam construction, so it blends in perfectly with the surrounding buildings. Once there, I watched the informative introductory film and received a guided tour of Conant House. The original building was constructed in 1730 and was last restored in 2016. Additional structures have been added to the back of the house, as is common for early New England houses. This back portion is the current space for offices, the library, and archives.

Exhibit display of a whale vertebra, model ship, and drum Brown Military c. WWII A classic red jukebox with options to play 8 songs
A square wooden implement about a foot wide with comb-like prongs at the top, a wooden handle, and a metal screen across the cranberry holding portion to let out water The tooth on the left displays a mostly historically accurate Roman soldier with a long bob haircut and a pretty flower on his chest. The right tooth shows a women in 19th century clothing. A metal press that would fit on a desk

This building contained a rich variety of artifacts common among maritime museums, including model ships, military uniforms, scrimshaw, whale vertebra, and cranberry harvesting tools. I was impressed by a specific pair of scrimshaw, as one depicted a young woman wearing a mid-19th century dress and the other showed a Roman soldier in remarkably accurate costume with the exception of the pretty flower pinned to his chest. (I have decided their names are Lucy and Boromir, and they are best friends.) Other neat artifacts in this section of the tour included a small printing press, a 1939 jukebox that apparently still works for special occasions, and many paintings of ships.

Oil Portrait of a Ship A blue-painted room with a fireplace. Paintings of ships hang on the walls Faux food and vintage cooking utensils pile on a sturdy wooden table
A red brick fireplace, bread oven, and firewood storage. A decorative musket hangs above the fireplace, and ironware fills the floor. Custom Painted Wallpaper of Idyllic Scene at the Bottom of the Staircase in Wicks House A sturdy desk, desk-chair, fireplace, portrait of George Washington above the mantle, and tall clock in the corner

We then crossed over to the Wicks House, named after Dr. Francis Wicks, who had the place built in 1790. By 1827, another medical doctor, Dr. Aaron Cornish, had purchased the property. The house was willed to the historical society in 1932 by Julia Warren Swift Wood who was named after her grandparents, Warren Nye Bourne and Julia A. Crocker Nye. Since then, it has served as a museum.

Greco-Roman Ruins on the Painted Wallpaper of Wicks House A green-painted wooden cabinet with three layers of shelving for medicine Wooden Leg in the Corner of the Doctor's Office at Wicks House

Our tour group entered through the kitchen, which was partially restored to expose the red brick fireplace, bread oven, and firewood storage. The museum’s collection of ironware, a decorative musket, and faux food added slightly romanticised authenticity to the scene. Moving along to the main stairwell, the tour guide pointed out the custom painted wallpaper, not unlike what I had seen at Historic New England’s Hamilton House in South Berwick, ME and The Rotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museum in New Bedford, MA.

A three-story yellow-painted clapboard sided mansion with a two-story Neoclassical style porch in the front. A tall, single-story reproduction Cape Cod style barn with two standard sized green doors plus a large pair of sliding doors in the middle A round raised flower bed surrounded by a red brick walkway connecting two flagstone paths
Yellow-painted wooden walls with blue-and-white 19h century reproduction wallpaper Golden, red, and brown wallpaper with a combination of floral and geometric designs A four-poster bed in a room with a small fireplace and wooden trunk

Among the many unique aspects of the building was the doctor’s office with its sturdy desk, a desk-chair, a cabinet for keeping medicines, and a wooden leg. The adjoining parlor was typical of the 19th century with brightly painted wood paneling and clashing wallpaper. Up the stairs were several bedrooms with four-poster bed and wooden mantles over the red brick fireplaces. A section of original wallpaper was saved to allow visitors and historians to view its design.

19th century Ceramic Clock A mirror is hung over the wallpaper and a table holding a 19th century tea set is set under the mirror Model Boat on a Bookshelf

One bedroom was transformed into a space for toys, games, and decorative items. The tour guide quizzed the group about what a wooden frame hung on the door might be. Another visitor corrected guessed that it was a kite. After avoiding the steep servants’ stair and returning to the main floor, we stopped in the bright pink dining room. On one side was a curio table, much like what I saw at Historic New England properties Sarah Orne Jewett House, Spencer-Peirce-Little Farm, and Quincy House. The highlight was a stereoscope for viewing pictures in three dimensions. Also in the room was a set dining table and an early record player. The last stop on the tour was a portrait gallery displaying paintings of people from the Falmouth area.

A two-person table sits in the center of a small room with shelving for toys, games, and decorative items Two geometric quilts are displayed on the bed A stereograph and pictures sit on the table
The dining table is set with a white cloth and china. The wall is covered by pink and white wallpaper showing trees, nests, houses, and a horse drinking from a trough Oil painting of a thirty year old woman wearing mid-19th century clothing, including a pink ribbon attached to her lace collar

The buildings of Museums on the Green are currently closed for the season but will open again in late May or early June. The grounds can be toured at any time of year between dawn and dusk. During open season, the museum hours are 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday, and 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. Guided tours of the properties are given on the hour, while a walking tour of the community leaves at 10:30 a.m. Admission was free to all during the 2024 season due to a grant from the Highland Street Foundation, which may renew for 2025.

Like most historic properties, the buildings are not fully accessible to those using a wheelchair or with limited mobility, although the visitor center has an ADA compliant ramp. As for the website, while the design is clean and mostly easy to read, important information such as the location of the visitor center is sometimes buried in secondary pages, and the website has no search feature. The homepage contains a looping video that cannot be paused, and several of the images do not have alt text. Adding these features would improve the otherwise excellent website. Overall, I enjoyed my visit the Museums on the Green and would revisit to take a walking if I were in the area again on a sunny day. This is a good stop for families and history buffs alike.


Abby Epplett’s Rating System

Experience: 7/10

Accessibility: 6/10



Location: 55 Palmer Ave, Falmouth, MA 02540, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Feel free to leave a comment on what you liked best about 'Abby Epplett, Historian' and what can be improved. Remember to speak with kindness.