Woods Hole, Massachusetts
| Woods Hole, Massachusetts | |
|---|---|
| Census-designated place | |
 |
|
 Location in Barnstable County and the state of Massachusetts. |
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| Coordinates: 41°31′36″N 70°39′47″W / 41.52667°N 70.66306°WCoordinates: 41°31′36″N 70°39′47″W / 41.52667°N 70.66306°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Massachusetts |
| County | Barnstable |
| Town | Falmouth |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3.9 sq mi (10.1 km2) |
| • Land | 2.1 sq mi (5.5 km2) |
| • Water | 1.8 sq mi (4.6 km2) |
| Elevation | 20 ft (6 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 781 |
| • Density | 366/sq mi (141.4/km2) |
| Time zone | Eastern (EST) (UTC-5) |
| • Summer (DST) | EDT (UTC-4) |
| ZIP code | 02543 |
| Area code(s) | 508 |
| FIPS code | 25-81245 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0617060 |
Woods Hole is a census-designated place in the town of Falmouth in Barnstable County, Massachusetts, United States. It lies at the extreme southwest corner of Cape Cod, near Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands. The population was 781 at the 2010 census.
It is the site of several famous marine science institutions, including Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, the Marine Biological Laboratory, the Woods Hole Research Center, NOAA's Northeast Fisheries Science Center (which started the Woods Hole scientific community in 1871), the Woods Hole Science Aquarium, a USGS coastal and marine geology center, and the home campus of the Sea Education Association. It is also the site of United States Coast Guard Sector Southeastern New England (formerly USCG Group Woods Hole), the Nobska Light lighthouse, and the terminus of the Steamship Authority ferry route between Cape Cod and the island of Martha's Vineyard.
Historically, Woods Hole included one of the few good harbors (along with Hyannis) on the southern side of Cape Cod (i.e. Great Harbor, contained by Penzance Point). The community became a center for whaling, shipping, and fishing, prior to its dominance today by tourism and marine research. At the end of the nineteenth century, Woods Hole was the home of the Pacific Guano Company, which produced fertilizer from guano imported from islands in the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean, and the coast of South Carolina. After the firm went bankrupt in 1889, Long Neck–the peninsula on which their factory was located–was renamed Penzance Point and was developed with Shingle-Style summer homes for bankers and lawyers from New York and Boston. Notable property owners on Penzance Point at the beginning of the twentieth century included Seward Prosser of New York's Bankers Trust Company; Francis Bartow, a partner in J. P. Morgan and Company; Joseph Lee, a partner in Lee, Higginson & Co.; and Franklin A. Park, an executive of Singer Sewing Machine. Other notable businessmen established homes on Gansett Point, Nobska Point, and at Quissett Harbor, further from the village center.
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