A Bourne history buff is behind an effort to save a nearly century old tourist information booth at the Bourne Bridge.
Cumberland Farms wants to take down the small Cape-style building to construct a larger gas station at the rotary.
Former Bourne historical society president Jack MacDonald says the booth is nearly 100 years old and recalls an era when tourists were starting to travel to the Cape by automobile, rather than by train.
“They didn’t have the internet back then. People just got in their cars and went to where they wanted to go," MacDonald said. "If they didn’t know where they wanted to stay or how to see the sites, they stopped in at one of these booths.”
MacDonald is asking the town’s historical commission to grant a demolition delay for the tourist booth, which would give him a year to find a new location. He says there's been interest in the community to save the building, including at the Upper Cape Cod Regional Technical School.
The ticket booth is visible along MacArthur Boulevard.
MacDonald was also part of an effort to save a similar building at the Sagamore Bridge, that’s now a gift shop at the Aptuxet Trading Post in Bourne.
He says preserving the history of these booths is important.
“They really ushered in a new transitional period from tourists coming to Cape Cod via train, to the new automobile industry, with new highways and new bridges being built," MacDonald said. "Once it's gone, it's gone."
