The Brewster Historical Society Inc.

PO Box 1146, Brewster, MA 02631

brewsterhistoricalsociety@comcast.net

508-896-9521

The Sea Pines School of Personality for Girls circa 1900's

The "I Can" School

The Sea Pines School of Personality for Girls was conceived by Faith Bickford, who suffered from an undisclosed medical ailment that meant she heard a lot of “You can’t” as a child. “You can’t play outside.” “You can’t run up the stairs.” But in her twenties Faith decided, “I can,” and went to her father, soon-to-be-retired Congregational minister Thomas Bickford, to ask for help in establishing a school for other young women to teach them that they could, too. Her father replied, “My dear, I could as soon stop Abraham as I could stop you,” and joined in the plan. Another family benefactor supplied a large check, and all was set to go, except for one little detail: Faith didn’t know how to run a school.  

Since physical activity (play, as she called it) was foremost on Faith’s mind but also foreign to her experience, she knew that she needed to educate herself before she could educate anyone else. She attempted to enroll in The Normal School of Physical Education (now part of Wellesley), but whatever her medical problem was, it caused her to fail the admitting physical exam. The director approved of the plan, though, and found a senior student who would teach Faith what she needed to know. She also suggested they start with a camp vs. a school, as camps were going to be “the thing” in the United States.

In 1907 the family opened a camp on the family’s 200 acres in Brewster where Old Sea Pines Inn and Sea Pines Condominiums now sit. Come fall several girls wanted to stay on for tutoring, and then and there the “Sea Pines School of Personality for Girls” was born. Its motto was “Personality Plus,” which sounds today like something to do with social skills, but theirs was a search for “ethical principles that would motivate and guide conduct.” The campus included a working and instructional farm, a beach on Cape Cod Bay, and numerous woodlands and nature trails.

According to a 1923 catalog acquired by The Brewster Historical Society, the classes were informal and intimate, with each student allowed to bring up her own problems for analysis and “individual construction of rational ideals.” The courses taught at the grammar school level included Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, History, Geography, Spelling, Grammar, French, Nature Study, Personality Discussion, Sewing, Cooking, Dancing, Drawing, and the Bible. At the high school level, they learned English, Latin, French, Algebra, Spanish, Physics and Chemistry. Electives included Geometry, Trigonometry, Latin, History, Music, Art, Reading, Typewriting, Stenography, Cooking, Sewing, Elementary Design, Millinery, Metalwork, and Basketry.  

The school closed in 1972. Local freelance writer Candy Hammond attended the school from 1971 to 1972 and credits it with setting her up for success as a writer. “It taught me to be self-disciplined,” she said. “We were treated like adults.” Its reputation was such that her family moved to Cape Cod so that Candy could attend the school. It was co-ed, with ten boys and sixty girls, and called simply “The Sea Pines School.”

The school operated on an innovative contract system, with students writing up commitment contracts with their teachers. Candy’s courses included Algebra, English, French, Philosophy of Astrology, Ceramics, Math, Pottery, Religion, Meditation, Painting, Weaving, Writing, Colonial America, and a Catcher in the Rye study, only some of which would have been familiar to Faith Bickford. The students were taught in groups and individually. 

In 1977 Steve and Michelle Rowan purchased the property and created many happy memories in the lovely “Old Sea Pines Inn,” hosting weddings, honeymoons, memorials, and other receptions in addition to unique summer vacations. They particularly enjoyed visits from school alumni who stopped by to reminisce. Brewster Historical Society is especially grateful to the Rowans, who offered free space for their volunteer parties and speaker programs.

In December of 2023 the Inn was sold to Ocean Edge Resort and Golf Club. At this writing their plans for the property are unknown.

The Old Sea Pines Inn is on the National Register of Historic Places.

With thanks to Beth Finch for sending our way the 1963 Founder’s Day interview with Faith Bickford, and to Faythe Ellis for the painstaking transcription of the audio recording.

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