The mission of the CSPG was clearly stated at the outset: "To promote as a location for educational, cultural and recreational activities available to the community and the general public, the Cataumet Schoolhouse building." In the past years a wide range of events have been held, and the board is still seeking ways to expand the effectiveness and community-building capacity of this small property, in accordance with its mission.
The Cataumet Schoolhouse is also home to a program that introduces students to the atmosphere and function of a traditional, one-room school. The antique desks are arranged in rows for each grade, a nineteenth century US map hangs on the back wall, and portraits of Washington and Lincoln look down from the walls above the original blackboards. The teacher's desk is equipped with an inkwell and an old hand bell, probably used in a similar school to call the class to order. Throughout the fall, third grade classes help fulfill their history requirement by visiting for a day of firsthand experience of what it was like when countless American children went to school in one room schoolhouses. Traditional studies, activities, and games are presented by CSPG members (who are often retired grade school teachers, themselves). It is hoped that such experiences might help kindle a fascination with history, and the past more generally, which can become a lifetime preoccupation. Such visits to the schoolhouse are worth more than a thousand words in helping kids understand the thread of history in which they are the next chapter.
Thanks to goals shared with other local organizations, such as the Bourne Conservation Trust, Bourne Society for Historic Preservation, Bourne Historical Society, Cataumet Arts Center, and Cataumet Civic Associates, the CSPG is helping make the village a more vibrant and exciting place to live and visit. In 2009 a partnership was formed to found and run the Valley Farm Thrift Store, establishing a source of income to help defray expenses, but the Cataumet Schoolhouse still depends on the generosity of residents and visitors for its operating budget.
We are most grateful to the Cape Cod Foundation for grants awarded from the Mears Family Fund to support the mission of the Schoolhouse. We also appreciate the generosity of the Birch Family Charitable Fund which allows the Schoolhouse to plan for both improvement projects and exciting community events.
On August 15, 2019, the Cataumet Schoolhouse was accepted by the National Park Service, Department of the Interior, for listing on the National Register of Historic Places and the Massachusetts Register of Historic Places.
In the fall of 2020, the CSPG Board of Directors announced that a most generous donor from our community offered the Cataumet Schoolhouse a matching grant opportunity of $50,000. This extraordinary offer means that our historic Schoolhouse will continue to be as relevant today as it was over one hundred years ago!
