Did you know that this building is called the Faith S. Tufts Gatehouse? Faith Simpkins Tufts, 1891-1969, was descended from families with deep Cape Cod roots, and her husband, Walter, was part of the renowned Tufts family dynasty of Massachusetts. She was very active in HSOY during the 1950s and 1960s, and she was also well known for her land conservation advocacy.
But what about the building itself? The story of the Gatehouse begins in West Dennis in 1956. That was the year in which Mr. John K. Davenport retired from the retail food industry at the age of 56 and embarked on a second career, real estate development. His first construction project was Wrinkle Point in West Dennis, a major residential subdivision, and to serve as his office on the premises he erected a modest building designed to resemble a Cape Cod-style dwelling.
The year in which John Davenport started his second career was also a momentous year for the Historical Society of Old Yarmouth. Just three years old, it received a hugely generous donation of 50 acres, including the Captain Bangs Hallet House, from Thacher family descendant Guido Perrera. Charged with the responsibility of restoring the house as a museum, the fledgling organization began to expand its reach to other parts of the property. In the late 1950s, as part of this endeavor, HSOY accepted the donation of two 19th-century buildings, Kelley Chapel and the Benjamin Hallet Blacksmith Shop, which were then moved to the property. (A third 19th-century building, the B.T. Gorham Cobbler Shop, was moved there in 2006 and serves as HSOY’s administrative office.)
Original Botanic Trails sign, ca 1966
The land under HSOY’s stewardship also included a large area that had previously been used as a golf course by the Thacher family. By 1964 John Davenport was an active HSOY board member, and he formed an Action Committee to spearhead a significant, transformative project for this area that was near and dear to his heart: the creation of the “Yarmouth Botanic Trails” (known today as the Nature Trails). As described in an August 7, 1964, article in the Dennis-Yarmouth Register, the plan for the trails envisioned “specimen trees, shrubs, ferns, vines and grasses … labeled and made prominent by careful landscaping.” The article also noted a donation the project had received: “a gate house.” The structure in question was none other than the modest office building John Davenport had built to oversee his first residential development. He had donated it along with all aspects of the physical move to HSOY property. “Gatehouse” was an appropriate description for its new function as the gateway to the trails.
In its early years, the Gatehouse was staffed by volunteers selling gift items, such as window plaques, paintings and stationery to support projects for and upkeep of the trails. In 1972 the building was dedicated to the memory of Faith S. Tufts. Although not open to the public today, it still serves as a physical marker to the start of the trails, and HSOY intends to rehabilitate it to expand our archival storage.
Researched and written by Gary Sachau
