Historical Marker

Falmouth Bombardment Site (1779 & 1814)

Falmouth · Barnstable County

The roadside stories worth pulling over for.

About this site

Falmouth Bombardment Site (1779 & 1814) is a historical marker in Falmouth, Barnstable County. It is one of 250 historical markers documented in Barnstable County, among 6,897 historic sites cataloged across the county on MassRoam.

The site sits at 41.5515, -70.6148 near Falmouth. The nearest cataloged historic site is Parker, Willoughby and Lillie Bisbee House (landmark), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Crocker, Capt. Timothy - Swift, Elijah House, Cahoon - Doyle House, and Aiken, James and Bridget House.

This record is drawn from MassRoam. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.

History

This marker recalls two British bombardments of Falmouth. During the Revolution, tensions over the town's resistance and its seizure of British provisions culminated in an armed confrontation, part of the broader pattern of coastal raids New England towns suffered in the 1770s. In the War of 1812, the British warship Nimrod appeared off Falmouth on January 28, 1814, and demanded the town's cannon; when the local militia refused, the ship shelled the village for several hours, damaging buildings but causing no deaths. The town's defiance in the face of the Nimrod became a point of local pride.

Sources: newenglandhistoricalsociety.com massachusetts250.org

📍 41.5515, -70.6148 · Falmouth, Barnstable County

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Nearby in Barnstable County

Landmark

Parker, Willoughby and Lillie Bisbee House

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Crocker, Capt. Timothy - Swift, Elijah House

Aiken, James and Bridget House

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