PETITION TO CHANGE THE NAME OF AGASSIZ ROAD, WOODS HOLE, MA
 
To the Select Board of the Town of Falmouth: 
 
We the undersigned residents and/or property owners of the Town of Falmouth, Massachusetts offer this petition to change the name of Agassiz Road.  In the tradition of Woods Hole street names, we request Louis Agassiz’s name be replaced with that of Dr. Jewel Cobb, a distinguished scientist who worked in Woods Hole.  The residents of Agassiz Road have selected “Jewel Cobb Road” as the name of the road.
 
Louis Agassiz (1807-1873) was appointed to the Harvard faculty in 1847. He founded the Anderson School for Natural History at Penikese Island in the summer of 1873. Agassiz’s methods inspired students at the school to establish the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole in 1888.
 
While Agassiz made significant contributions in geology and other areas of science, he was a polygenist.  He professed beliefs that humans had different origins, and that white people were superior physically, intellectually, and morally to black people, indigenous people and people of color. Agassiz used his science in support of white supremacy.  Such racist science became an important justification for slavery.
 
We wish to live in a community that welcomes all people, regardless of skin color, ethnicity, religion or culture.  To venerate a scientific racist has given the wrong message for too many years.  We have an opportunity now to change a road name and honor a scientist whose life and work reflect the true values of our community.   
 
Dr. Jewel Cobb (1924-2017) was named an independent investigator at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in 1949.  She served on the MBL Campaign Steering Committee and became an MBL society member in 1972.  In 2007, she was named an Emeritus member.
 
Dr. Cobb was a cell biologist.  She researched tissue culture and studied skin cancer (melanoma) and the effects of hormones, UV light and chemotherapy on cell division in skin cells. She was the recipient of many awards and several honorary doctorates.  She was a member of the National Academy of Medicine and, in 1993, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Sciences.
 
From 1981-1990, Dr. Cobb was President of California State University at Fullerton. She was an active supporter of equal access to educational and professional opportunity for women and under-represented minorities.  She was known for guiding and inspiring young women interested in pursuing careers in science. She held faculty positions at New York University, Sarah Lawrence, Connecticut College, and Rutgers.
 
A change in the name of the road does not erase history, but reveals it.  By submitting this petition, the undersigned take responsibility for our history, acknowledge its consequences, and act in accordance with our values and vision for our community.