Woods Hole Historical Museum

07/08/2026

A reminder that we are having our July Conversation at noon tomorrow at Woods Hole Community Hall in honor of the Museum's Golden Jubilee. We want this to be a genuine conversation, so please bring your memories, questions, and anything you have tucked away that might spark a story: old photos, letters, newspaper clippings, records, etc. We hope to see you there.

Join us on July 9th at noon in Community Hall for a Conversation in recognition of the Museum's Golden Jubilee. Former Executive Directors Jennifer Gaines and Debbie Scanlon and longtime Community Boat Shop volunteer Bob Leary will have a conversation moderated by Executive Director Mark Long about...

07/04/2026

Happy Fourth from our Archives!

This 1898 promotional booklet — "The History of Our American Flag" — was a key form of advertising before radio, television, and the internet. Companies like Chase & Sanborn of Boston put their advertising dollars into beautifully illustrated booklets like this one, distributed through local merchants. We think that it is a fascinating glimpse into our past, both locally and nationally.

07/02/2026

🎈Today is our 40th birthday! 🎈

We would like to offer a heartfelt thanks to everyone in our community who has helped us reach this milestone. We look forward to being your local family bookshop for years to come.

Come celebrate our anniversary with exclusive commemorative merch!

07/01/2026

Tonight/Wednesday from 5:30…

Happy July! 🎉 Don't miss out Twilight Tour this evening!

06/21/2026

Annette Gordon-Reed, a Harvard historian, revolutionized Jefferson-Hemings scholarship with her first book. Her fourth book, The Hemingses of Monticello, won the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award; she has written five more books and earned honors including a MacArthur Fellowship.

The question of what Thomas Jefferson really meant when he wrote “all men are created equal” in the Declaration of Independence has persisted throughout American history. It’s time to move beyond the fixation, Annette Gordon-Reed argued last year. https://theatln.tc/kU5AZBp2

06/21/2026

If you find yourself in Boston in the near future, this looks like an interesting exhibit.

06/20/2026

We did not know that it was International Horseshoe Crab Day, but we are delighted to share that our new seasonal exhibit — reTern to Sea: A History of Specimen Collecting Boats — features the vaunted horseshoe crab! Come and visit us today and have a look.

https://woodsholemuseum.org/2026-exhibit-retern-to-sea-a-history-of-specimen-collecting-boats-in-woods-hole/

Today is International Horseshoe Crab Day!

One of the most intriguing and memorable wildlife observations at the national seashore is horseshoe crab spawning. Females begin to come ashore to spawn along protected sandy beaches during evening high tides around the full and new moons in May and June. As the females approach the beach, males, which are 1/3 the size of females, use a pair of modified claws that look like boxing gloves to attach themselves to females. You may see more than one male crowding a pair, forming a large cluster along the water's edge. The fertilized eggs, which are laid in nests that females dig in the sand, are a critical food resource for migrating shorebirds.

Some horseshoe crabs have tags! Report tagged crabs to help scientists and wildlife managers care for the ocean. Be sure to include the tag number, horseshoe crab condition and location information: Horseshoe Crab Monitoring and Recapture Form

Read more: https://www.nps.gov/caco/learn/nature/horseshoe-crabs.htm

NPS Photo