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Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
Postcards from Falmouth Oral History Transcript
Recorded: August 19, 2021
Oral Historian: Charles McCaffrey
Interviewer: Troy Clarkson
Topic: West Falmouth Library
Note: The right column references postcards by identifiers searchable in the Digital
Commonwealth online collection.
00:00
[Music]
00:45
so on the theme of libraries Charlie
00:47
welcome you are part of the West
#westfalmouthlibrary
Hunt_West_Bldg_479 through
482
Gunning_West_Bldg_1558
through 1563
00:49
Falmouth Library which is
00:51
not only a beautiful and historic
00:54
building in the West Falmouth Village
00:56
but also an important part of the
00:58
community's culture and cultural history
01:01
so just please give us
01:03
a brief introduction of both the
01:04
building and the organization okay well
01:09
you said my name is Charlie McCaffrey
01:10
I’m
01:11
a lifelong
01:13
summer resident of Falmouth
01:15
of North Falmouth actually not West
01:18
Falmouth
#westfalmouth
#northfalmouth
1
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
01:19
and
01:20
I moved to Falmouth full time in
01:24
2005.
01:26
at that time I was aware of the
01:29
West Falmouth Library as a wonderful
01:31
building but I had never been in it and
01:34
a friend urged me
01:35
to go visit the West Falmouth Library
01:38
shortly after I moved full time
01:40
I quickly became involved with its
01:43
activities and learned a great deal
01:45
about its history
01:47
I was struck by the library because it
01:49
reminded me
01:51
physically of the small
01:53
branch library in Boston that I had went
01:56
to as a child it looked very similar
01:58
and that was the center of my childhood
02:01
in uh growing up in Boston
02:03
so I felt very comfortable
02:05
at the library and began to volunteer
02:08
for events
02:10
the library was started
02:13
in the late
02:16
19th century by the 1870s by a group of
02:19
women in West Falmouth who wanted to get
02:22
together and share books
2
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
02:24
they
02:25
had a small building
02:27
which they quickly outgrew
02:29
and sought to develop a real library
02:32
and
02:32
got through the
02:34
generous donation of people in the
02:36
community they were able to acquire the
02:38
land that it's on
02:40
and to build
02:42
the main building
02:43
in
02:44
1895
02:47
and it's continued as a library since
02:49
1895.
02:51
initially staffed primarily by
02:54
volunteers
02:55
but increasingly over the last 20 years
02:58
by professional staff
03:03
the library building
03:04
uh
03:06
was added on to
03:08
in the 1970s
03:10
and then
03:11
we became aware
03:13
while I was on the Board of the library
03:16
that we needed to modernize and bring it
#1895
3
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
03:19
up to the
03:21
21st century needs of a public library
03:25
I say public library we are a public
03:27
library
03:28
though we are not a municipal library we
03:30
receive a small amount of support from
03:33
the town but we need to raise
03:36
our budget
03:37
annually
03:39
to keep the library operating and thanks
03:42
to the generosity of people in West
03:44
Falmouth and in Falmouth as a whole and
03:46
be
03:47
beyond we're able to sustain a very
03:50
efficient library operation
03:52
but as I started to say we need
03:55
to recognize that the physical plan was
03:57
not adequate for a 21st century library
04:01
so we needed to add
04:03
such things as better accessibility
04:07
handicapped-accessible bathrooms
04:09
modern heating and ventilation uh
04:13
archive space that's temperature
04:15
controlled for the significant papers of
04:18
the history of West Falmouth that we
04:21
hold some going back to the
04:23
mid uh 17th century
4
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
04:28
so in
04:30
2013 we began to raise funds
04:33
to renovate
04:35
the existing library to restore it to
04:37
its original
04:39
appearance
04:40
it had been well maintained
04:43
and not altered in any great detail
04:47
since 1895 but it certainly showed the
04:50
effects of 120 years of wear and tear
04:55
and to put in the modern features that
04:57
we needed without compromising the
05:01
original space we put on a small
05:03
addition
05:04
that has
05:06
the archive room
05:07
for handicap-accessible bathrooms a new
05:11
quiet reading room
05:12
uh stairs and in that great entrance
05:17
the general the project cost us
05:19
approximately
05:21
three million dollars
05:22
and through the generosity of the
05:25
community in a town and state grant
05:28
we were able to complete the project in
05:31
2017.
05:34
today we are
#2013
#2017
5
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
05:37
open 30 hours a week
05:39
we have a professional staff
05:42
and we undertake many programs such as
05:45
lectures
05:46
music programs
05:48
children's programs that are open to the
05:51
whole town and are well attended by
05:53
people from throughout the town
05:56
thank you
05:57
for that wonderful history of the
06:00
organization and the building I always
06:02
say a library is the heart of a
06:04
community and that certainly is true for
06:06
the West Falmouth Library and I’m glad
06:08
you do the distinction
06:11
between the West Falmouth Library and
06:14
the Falmouth public slash municipal
06:16
library because
06:17
the West Falmouth Library is
06:21
open and accessible to the public and I
06:23
know that's an important part of your
06:24
mission
06:25
it is and it's interesting that
06:29
as a community center and that's very
06:32
much what it is as a library and has
06:33
always been that
06:35
but that also
6
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
06:37
correlates well with what is happening
06:40
to libraries today
06:42
libraries are very much community
06:44
centers and a provision for the place
06:46
for the community to gather and
06:48
individuals to use for many purposes
06:51
they are not just
06:53
about lending books
06:56
particularly as
06:58
reading materials are available from
07:00
many sources they continue to provide
07:03
that
07:03
and need to expand what they provide
07:06
the key thing with the library is it
07:08
provides
07:10
materials for learning for free
07:14
but it complements that
07:17
with a variety of programs
07:19
that the community can enjoy in a place
07:22
where the community can gather
07:25
I remember
07:26
this is going back
07:28
some years but when I was running for
07:30
public office for the what was then
07:32
called the Board of Selectmen is today
07:34
called the Select Board uh local
07:36
candidate debates would be held at the
7
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
07:39
West Falmouth Library and I know you
07:41
still have many of those civic events
07:42
there now and so that really reinforces
07:46
the role of a village community library
07:49
as as you say not just an institution
07:52
where you can experience information in
07:55
multimedia fashion but where you can
07:58
gather and be part of the community one
08:00
of the great events that I’ve enjoyed
08:03
participating in is one of the annual
08:05
fundraisers where people gather at the
08:07
library then fan out to different
08:09
people's homes to eat and then come back
08:11
for dessert tell us about that
08:13
that's called the Movable Feast it has
08:15
been a major fundraiser for the library
08:17
for the last 12 years
08:19
excepting
08:21
the last year of course because of the
08:23
pandemic
08:25
actually was an event that I started and
08:28
copied it from
08:30
an event of the same name and character
08:32
that was held by the Historic Albany
08:35
Foundation where I used to live before I
08:37
moved to
08:38
Falmouth um
#movablefeast
#pandemic
#historicalbanyfoundation
8
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
08:40
it
08:41
well received it because it does
08:43
build
08:44
on and strengthen community interaction
08:48
the idea is that people come to the
08:50
library and they're randomly for
08:52
cocktails and then they're randomly
08:55
assigned
08:56
to one of a dozen homes in the
08:58
neighborhood
09:00
for dinner and conversation so they meet
09:03
new people
09:04
and then come back to the library and
09:06
where did you have dinner who did you
09:08
meet what
09:10
new people
09:11
uh have you found you know so it's it's
09:15
a very popular event uh
09:18
I would add on the community center role
09:21
of the library and how
09:23
that's not just a new concept in
09:25
libraries
09:26
but
09:27
when the library was built in 1895
09:30
the main building had two rooms of
09:32
approximate equal size one had the books
09:37
and the other was a community room which
9
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
09:39
still exists
09:41
and did not have any books in it it had
09:43
a bench all the way around the perimeter
09:46
and it was for community gatherings so
09:49
it was built as much as a community as
09:52
much as a community center and gathering
09:54
place as a place for borrowing books
09:58
and because the the library has been
10:01
part of the community for
10:03
as you said more than 120 years now but
10:06
is also
10:07
the keeper of archives dating back even
10:09
before the building was built you
10:11
mentioned that your archives include uh
10:14
documents that date back to the 17th
10:16
century tell us about uh some of the
10:18
more interesting documents you have in
10:20
your collection uh one of the documents
10:22
is a deed
10:23
from a Wampanoag Indian
10:26
granting 30 acres of land
10:29
to I forget first name but a Gifford and
10:31
we know that his
10:33
name has a long history in town
10:36
uh so it's the actual deed from
10:39
1673 I believe of 30 acres of land in
10:42
West Falmouth to the
#wampanoag
#gifford
#1673
10
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
10:44
Giffords um
10:47
I have a friend actually who's who
10:50
bought
10:51
the Giffords built a house
10:54
and today it's the oldest extant Cape Cod
10:57
style house
10:58
in
10:59
1678
11:01
and it remained in the Gifford family
11:04
until the early 90s
11:07
when actually a friend of mine acquired
11:10
it
11:11
and occasionally opens it to the public
11:15
so isn't that amazing so uh although the
11:17
building has been around for a little
11:20
more than a century it captures nearly
11:22
four centuries of local history yes
11:24
another document that's interesting is a
11:27
passport
11:29
for a ship
11:31
signed by
11:32
Secretary of State James Madison and
#jamesmadison
11:35
President Thomas Jefferson
#thomasjefferson
11:40
and it's an it's rather an elaborate
11:42
printed document with their signatures
11:45
for a ship that had been built in West
11:48
Falmouth Harbor and sailed around the
11
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
11:50
world
11:51
isn't that amazing now in fast
11:53
forwarding all these years still today
11:56
the West Falmouth Library is an active
11:58
participant in
12:00
capturing today's history and and being
12:04
part of the living history like what
12:06
we're doing today
12:08
but also continuing to be a focal point
12:10
a gathering point as you called it for
12:12
the community yes and I do recall a
12:14
while ago
12:15
we did have an oral history project and
12:18
recorded some older residents of West
12:20
Falmouth
12:22
isn't that then that's so important like
12:24
what we're doing here today so that
12:25
future generations can understand uh
12:28
what life was like in in Falmouth uh in
12:31
2021 yeah
12:33
um
12:35
and I I would add
12:37
um I myself
12:39
uh I’m President of the Board
12:42
for another few days
12:44
but will continue in my involvement with
12:46
the library I’m giving a presentation
12
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
12:50
at the library on
12:52
sea level rise
12:54
which will be
12:56
the probably the most important event
12:58
that will affect West Falmouth and all
13:00
of the town over the next 50 100 years
13:04
so I’m reporting on what the town
13:07
is doing
13:08
to make us resilient to sea level rise
13:11
which will require a huge effort on the
13:13
part of everyone
13:15
for sure and so
13:17
a generation or two from now people will
13:19
look back on what we did
13:21
uh
13:22
to to understand uh
13:25
and to deal with sea level rise and and
13:28
that will be
13:29
that is an important part of what
13:31
Falmouth will look like a generation in
13:34
the library
13:35
not only West Falmouth but the others
13:38
are a key place where
13:40
what we are facing can be communicated
13:42
to the public effectively
13:45
you know that that's a really good point
13:46
because
#sealevelrise
13
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
13:48
today
13:50
it seems is sometimes
13:53
scientific fact
13:54
is even debated but libraries continue
13:57
to be a place where there is
14:00
some ability to to have discussion about
14:04
public policy and facts and to share
14:06
those in a in a neutral uh educational
14:10
environment right
14:12
and where
14:13
people actually interact rather than
14:16
individually looking at the information
14:18
and making decisions
14:20
without the context of discussion right
14:24
and that's so that goes back to your
14:25
original point about the value of a
14:27
library as a gathering place because uh
14:30
rather than it's a place where people
14:31
can come and rather than speaking at
14:33
each other can speak with each other yes
14:37
yeah the idea of libraries as a
14:40
quiet place is somewhat passé right and
14:43
importantly so right yeah
14:46
uh so
14:47
are there any other either historical or
14:50
interesting facts about the West
14:51
Falmouth Library you'd like to share
14
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
14:53
with our viewers
14:57
I think its role as with discussion
15:00
implies is central
15:02
to the community
15:04
a community to be in a
15:06
a thriving community needs a sense of
15:09
place
15:10
which is created by its history and
15:13
interactions but also by key physical
15:16
places
15:17
and
15:18
the West Falmouth Library is central
15:21
to that place called West Falmouth it's
15:24
an interestingly enough
15:28
in this series we also had someone from
15:29
the Woods Hole Library
15:32
which has a similar rich history as a
15:35
partially privately funded but publicly
15:38
accessible library makes me I think of
15:41
the point
15:42
Falmouth more than many communities
15:45
has distinct villages each with their
15:47
own identity and each with their own
15:49
history and and so
15:52
it's important that the West Falmouth
15:55
library not only catalogued the history
15:57
of the Falmouth community
#woodsholepubliclibrary
15
�Falmouth Public Library – Postcards from Falmouth
15:59
but what's unique uh and special about
16:01
West Falmouth itself yes
16:04
uh
16:05
it it is very much West Falmouth but as
16:07
I said earlier too it also serves and
16:10
draws people from throughout the town
16:12
I myself
16:14
have always lived in North Falmouth
16:16
but found the library a very important
16:19
cultural
16:21
center so became involved
16:24
and as by doing that became much more
16:27
familiar with West Falmouth
16:29
as well as
16:31
other parts of Falmouth
16:33
and that's so important because we are
16:36
at the end of the day we are one
16:37
Falmouth in one one community absolutely
16:40
well Charlie thank you so very much for
16:42
sharing some time with us and a little
16:44
bit of the history of both that
16:46
beautiful historic building that's been
16:48
lovingly restored and modernized but
16:51
also of the history of the library
16:53
organization itself and we wish you many
16:55
many more decades of success
16:57
thank you Troy
16
�
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Title
A name given to the resource
Transcript of Charles McCaffrey's Oral History on West Falmouth Library
1673
1895
2013
2017
charles mccaffrey
COVID-19
Gifford
Historic Albany Foundation
james madison
movable feast
North Falmouth
oral history
pandemic
Postcards from Falmouth
sea level rise
thomas jefferson
transcript
troy clarkson
Wampanoag
West Falmouth
west falmouth library
woods hole public library