Falmouth, town (2020 pop. 32,517), Barnstable co., SE Mass., on Cape Cod; settled c.1660, inc. 1686. Once a whaling and boatbuilding center, the town has become a popular tourist summer resort. Falmouth was attacked by the British in the Revolutionary War and again in the War of 1812. Historic structures include the Ship's Bottom Roof House (1678); the Congregational church on the town green (1756; restored), with a bell cast by Paul Revere; and the Julia Wood House (1790). The town includes the community of Woods Hole, seat of the Oceanographic Institution and Marine Biological Laboratories.
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