Digital Collections@FPL

 

 

Visit the Library’s collection of locally significant digital content by clicking on the highlighted categories below in blue.

 

 

Wish You Were Here: Postcards from the Past Digital Exhibit

This digital exhibit showcases the collected art, poetry, and postcards of Wish You Were Here: Postcards from the Past, a 2023 project led by Calliope Poetry for Community. It follows the approach of Wish You Were Here’s original, in-person exhibit at Falmouth Museums on the Green, with community works displayed alongside the postcard images that inspired them.

 

Postcards from Falmouth: The Oral Histories

 

This collection of oral histories about Falmouth are inspired by the Library’s extensive historical postcard collection of Falmouth locations and landmarks.

The historians are all residents of Falmouth, as are the interviewers, Barbara Kannellopoulos and Troy Clarkson.  The histories were recorded at FCTV.

Postcards from Falmouth is a local history project made possible by a Library Services Technology Act grant administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.

 

 

The Anita Gunning and Robert C. Hunt, Jr. Historical Postcard Collections

Memorial Library Postcard from the Gunning and Hunt Postcard Collections

 

Gifted to the Library by Anita Gunning and Robert C. Hunt, Jr., the Library’s collection of historic postcards consists of over 2000 depictions of Falmouth, its villages, and other noted landmarks within our beautiful town.

 

 

 

 

Falmouth at Home Exhibit

Falmouth at Home is a collection of photographs taken by Falmouth residents that documents how the community spent their days staying close to home during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

 

 

 

 

 

Honoring Falmouth Veterans 

 

Honoring Falmouth Veterans is a collection of images depicting the monuments and plaques along Memorial Lane, which leads up to the Library’s front entrance. The Library collects and preserves photos of Falmouth residents who served in the United States military during a World War. 

Please email photos to fpldigital@falmouthpubliclibrary.org, and make your subject “Honoring Falmouth Veterans”.  Most importantly, please include the veteran’s name, branch of service, and the war in which they served.

 

Falmouth Public Library Art Collection

America, by Hiram Powers from the Falmouth Public Library Art Collection

The Library’s art collection consists of an array of formats, many by local artists:

  • sculptures and statues
  • original oil and watercolor paintings
  • photographs
  • etchings and engravings
  • roller art, woodcuts, and lithographs
  • wood carvings and wooden structures
  • ceramic vases and tiles

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ships Logs Collection

Read the logbooks of Falmouth whalers!  According to the Falmouth Historical Society, who house the original ships logs, thirteen whaleships sailed from Falmouth for at least 51 voyages.  Dating back from 1806 to 1879, the logs were scanned and are available to view.  Click on the image to view the logs:

 

The logs are also currently being transcribed, which may be viewed by clicking here.  The transcripts are added as completed.

 

Falmouth Public School Yearbooks

The Library’s collection of Falmouth Public School yearbooks, commencement programs, and student publications range from 1915 to the present.  Titles include:

  • The Broadcaster (Henry Ward Hall School)
  • The Clipper Compact (Falmouth High School)
  • Lawrence High-Lites (Lawrence High School)
  • The Lawrencian (Lawrence High School)
  • The Voice (Lawrence High School)

 

The Falmouth Enterprise 

Almost every edition of the Falmouth Enterprise from 1896 to 2017 is now archived in a searchable online database.

The original digitization project was made possible by a grant funded by the Community Preservation Committee under the Community Preservation Act in 2013.

Expansion of the years 1963-2017 is possible thanks to the Board of Library Trustees and with the permission of the Falmouth Enterprise.

 

Town of Falmouth Annual Reports

 

The Town of Falmouth Annual Reports from 1887-1888, 1906-1914, 1928-1930 and 1963-2015 are in the process of being digitized-we expect them to be available later in the fall. Check here for reports up to 1931, and years not listed,  or contact the library to check about specific dates during the transition.

 

 

Falmouth Public Library Historical Documents

 

Through a grant by the Falmouth Community Preservation Fund in 2010, the Library was enabled to rebind documents and records dating back to 1792.  The documents include accession books, circulation statistics, and Trustee minutes.