CLAIMS TO FAME: Gateway to Cape Cod; home of the nation’s oldest store; the “Cape Cod” rotary hedges welcoming Cape-bound travelers over the Bourne Bridge
HISTORICAL BRAGGING RIGHTS: Both the oldest and the youngest town (used to be part of Sandwich, which is the oldest town); settled by Pilgrims as early as 1620s
BEACHES: Monument Beach; Gray Gables Beach; Picture Lake; Sagamore Beach; Squeteague Harbor; Hen Cove
DON’T MISS: Watching boats (and a rare whale) go by from the Canal; Canal Bikeway; Pairpont Glassworks; National Cemetery
Named after political figures Johnathan Sr. and father Richard Bourne when it was settled in 1640, the town of Bourne lies at the northeast corner of Buzzards Bay. Travelers to Cape Cod go through Bourne when they cross over the Bourne, Sagamore or Railroad bridges, and even beforehand if they travel through Buzzards Bay from Rt. 25.
Bourne is comprised of 10 villages: Bourne Village, Bournedale, Buzzards Bay, Cataumet, Gray Gables, Monument Beach, Otis Air Base, Pocasset, Sagamore and Sagamore Beach.
The town has a rich history often overshadowed by monumental Cape Cod towns: Pilgrims settled here as early as 1627; it is home to the nation’s first store (Aptucxet Trading Post); Sagamore was once a major freight car producer; President Grover Cleveland frequented Gray Gables. It was first marked off as a part of Sandwich in 1640 and kept that denomination until 1884, making it the youngest town on Cape Cod.
Monument Beach, a public beach off of Shore Road, offers scenic views of Buzzards Bay and has full facilities and some free parking. There are numerous quiet harbors and inlets for boating, fishing, shell fishing and swimming. The Scenic Park beneath the Bourne Bridge is a comfortable location for those seeking to enjoy the Canal and its many activities, and the Cape Cod Canal bike path is a 14 mile trail that runs on both sides of the canal for avid cyclists, runners and walkers. The town is also home to the John Gallo Ice Arena, open to the public from September to March and on a more limited basis during the summer.
Bourne is home to the National Marine Life Center, an independent, non-profit rehabilitation and release hospital for the treatment of stranded sea turtles and seals, with future plans to expand to treat dolphins, porpoises and small whales.
The town operates its own school department with two elementary, one middle and one high school. Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School, which serves Bourne, Falmouth, Sandwich, Wareham and Marion, is located in Bourne, as is the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, a maritime college in Buzzards Bay.
Bourne Town Information
Bourne Fire Department
130 Main Street
Buzzards Bay, MA 02532
(508) 759-4412
www.townofbourne.com/Departments/PUBLICSAFETY/FireDepartment/tabid/187/Default.aspx
Bourne Police Department
175 Main Street
Buzzards Bay, MA 02532
(508) 759-4451
www.bournepolice.com
Town of Bourne
24 Perry Avenue
Bourne, MA 02532
(508) 759-0600
www.townofbourne.com
Bourne News
- Hidden Cape Cod: Fascinating, Little-Known Facts About Every Cape Town April 29, 2024
- Hidden Cape Cod: The Story of Amrita Island April 26, 2024
- Ruck4Hit Raising Funds for Military Families Friday April 24, 2024
- Cape Delegation Members Say No to Bridge Tolls April 23, 2024
- Fire breaks out in Pocasset April 17, 2024
- Traffic crash on Sagamore Bridge snarls traffic April 16, 2024
- US Army Corps Of Engineers To Perform Overnight Work On Bourne Bridge April 1, 2024
- Healey and Army Corps of Engineers Cement New Agreement on Canal Bridges March 22, 2024
- Two vehicles collide on Route 3 in Bourne causing one to rollover March 20, 2024
- Pickup strikes utility pole in Bourne March 17, 2024