When the earliest members of the Woods Hole Woman’s Club first convened in 1914, women could not yet vote in Massachusetts and were only beginning to be involved in public affairs.  These 31 village residents organized themselves into an association with the objective of “bringing its members together for their intellectual advancement, mutual helpfulness, and the promotion of higher moral and social conditions.”  The formation of the Club was a local expression of a nationwide burgeoning movement of women joining together to extend their influence and resources beyond their homes.  The resulting local organizations were dedicated to issues such as education, self-improvement, women’s rights, temperance, public health, civic reform, and assisting those in need. 

The Woman’s Club has been meeting continuously since 1914.  Programs presented at Club meetings have addressed topics including current events, science, travel, and the arts to foster members who are informed and engaged citizens.  Club gatherings have also offered opportunities for entertainment and socialization. 

The Club consistently directed its energy toward promoting village improvement.  Examples of the fruits of these efforts are the establishment of an annual clean-up day that continues into the 21^st century, the 1916 hiring of a district nurse whose position became the foundation for the current Visiting Nurse Association of Cape Cod, and the building of the Woods Hole tennis courts in 1933. 

Through the years the Club has offered strong support for the education of local children and youth in various ways.  It provided curriculum materials including a Victrola to the Woods Hole Public School until its closing in 1982.  The Children’s School of Science, the Woods Hole Child Center, and the Woods Hole Public Library have all received numerous contributions from the Club.  Since 1927 the Club has awarded college scholarships to local youth, numbering 150 grants between 1980 and 2024. More history of the Woods Hole Woman’s Club is available in a centennial commemorative book by Charlotte Emans Moore and published by the Woods Hole Historical Collection & Museum.  Titled “The Ladies of Woods Hole Never Do Things by Halves” The Woods Hole Woman’s Club: Self-Improvement, Community Service, and Fellowship 1914-2014, the volume was the source for the above summary and provides a much richer description of the Club’s history and personalities accompanied by archival photographs.

The book is available for loan at The Woods Hole Public Library and for sale at the Woods Hole Historical Museum Gift Shop.