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Breaking Ground

The Institution’s fourth director, Paul Fye (left) presided over a period of major change during his tenure in office from 1958 to 1977. It was a time of national interest in basic science, including oceanography, and the resulting boost in federal support for marine science permitted considerable expansion. Fye, with the help of Ken Leach of the Boston construction firm George B.H. Macomber, broke ground on construction at the new Quissett Campus in March 1971. The most recent addition to the campus came in 2012 with the opening of the Laboratory for Ocean Sensors and Observing Systems, which houses engineers and technicians working on the NSF-funded Ocean Observatories Initiative. (Photo courtesy of Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Archives)