Visiting the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History
The modest Cape Cod Museum of Natural History is located in Brewster, in the state of Massachusetts. It focuses on local wildlife, botany, and archaeology.
History
The concept for this museum has been around for decades, with the first proposal dating back to February 1954. Its first president and co-founder was the naturalist John Hay, a conservation activist and prolific author who wrote 18 books from his home in Brewster. He served as president of the museum from 1955 to 1980.
The museum's primary mission was to educate children and adults about local flora and fauna. In its early days, the term museum was a bit of an exaggeration, as it consisted only of a few traveling, temporary exhibits shown in local schools.
It was not until 1958 that the museum acquired its first plot of land in Brewster, and 1960 before a structure was built there. This was the first permanent building for the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History to house its collection. Today, it still stands and is known as the summer pavilion.
In 1968, another building was inaugurated, housing offices, exhibition spaces, and a library. Then in 2016, the museum expanded again, adding a butterfly house and educational trails to teach visitors about the importance of pollinators.
The Cape Cod Museum of Natural History
The museum occupies a 17,222 square foot building that houses exhibition halls and administrative offices, a butterfly house, an aquarium featuring 80 local species, beehives, and a collection of taxidermy birds.
Furthermore, the museum owns 80 acres of land, which sits adjacent to 320 acres of town-owned conservation land. The trails lead you through pine forests, a beach, a salt marsh, and a beech forest, offering a clear look at the local wildlife.
This is a site that provides a genuine look at the regional ecosystem.
During our time in Cape Cod, we visited the town's natural history museum. It is not very big, but it is still a very interesting visit.
You will find many taxidermied birds from the region, the area is rich in birds and they show it off.
In the aquariums, you can see crayfish, turtles, and eels. They are accompanied by very interesting cards explaining the ecosystem of the local marshes.
To finish, a short guided walk that goes down toward the beach, during which the local nature is highlighted.
A very pleasant moment to share with the family.