Sea Education Association has entered into an agreement to purchase Gosnold Inc.’s property at 165 Woods Hole Road in Falmouth.
The 2.37-acre property abuts the SEA campus and is also adjacent to Woodwell Climate Research Center. The property is home to the Stephen Miller House, a large home built in the early 1900s, as well as a stone caretaker’s cottage, and other outbuildings. The acquisition will increase the size of SEA’s Woods Hole campus to just over 7 acres.
“This once-in-a-generation opportunity is well timed. As we enter our next fifty years of providing experiential ocean education, we’re thrilled to be able to expand our shore-based campus, provide more student housing, and better fulfill our mission to explore, study, and steward our marine and maritime environments,” said SEA President Peg Brandon.
“In addition to providing space to increase our high school, gap year, undergraduate and adult programming, the expanded facilities will improve SEA’s ability to meet another important challenge. There is a local and national need for more seagoing marine and scientific crew. Until now we’ve been space-limited in our ability to provide workforce development to meet this demand,” said Brandon.
The purchase reunites two properties that were part of one large estate in the early 1900s. According to Spritsail, A Journal of the History of Falmouth and Vicinity (Volume 8, Number 2, Summer 1994), in 1907 the present-day SEA campus was a family home owned by Charles Whittemore, who converted their stable into what is now Miller House and expanded their property to include the adjoining estates as well as Racing Beach.
“For years, Gosnold has been a pleasure to have next door, and great steward of this historic property. We look forward to maintaining and enhancing this remarkable community asset,” said Brandon.
Gosnold is selling the property in order to develop a new Behavioral Health facility in Cataumet.
“Though the sale of this building is a loss to Gosnold, as the Stephen Miller House has been in our organization since 1974, we are very pleased that it is going to Sea Education Association. We support their mission and appreciate their success in educating young people,” said Gosnold CEO Richard Curcuru.
“It’s especially exciting that it’s happening on Sea Education Association’s 50th anniversary, as we at Gosnold are also celebrating our 50th anniversary this year. SEA has been a great neighbor of ours over many years and we wish them much success,” Curcuru added.
Sea Education Association is an internationally recognized leader in undergraduate, gap year and high school ocean education. For 50 years and more than one million nautical miles sailed, SEA has educated students about the world’s oceans through its Boston University accredited study abroad program. More information at www.sea.edu
