Custom House Maritime Museum - Newburyport, MA
Posted by: 
neoc1
N 42° 48.708 W 070° 52.099
19T E 347250 N 4741608
Old custom house in Newburyport has been converted into a maritime museum.
Waymark Code: WMC6DN
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 07/31/2011
Views: 8
The Federal Customs House was designed by Robert Mills, who was also the architect for the Washington Monument in Washington, DC. The granite Custom House is an excellent example of Classic Revival architecture. It functioned as a customs house from 1835 to 1911. The building was re-purposed for a variety of tasks, including a storage depot for submarine parts. It was restored between 1972 and 1975 by local area citizens and the Newburyport Maritime Society. As a result, it how is the home to the Custom House Maritime Museum, an educational center and a research facility.
The Custom House Maritime Museum is managed by the Newburyport Maritime Society, Inc. which was established in 1968. The mission of the society and the museum is to "protect, preserve and interpret the maritime heritage of the lower Merrimack Valley region and how it relates to American history"
The museum has a number of galleries:
The Bushee Gallery features changing exhibits, such as the current exhibit on clipper and merchant ships.
The Moseley Gallery features a permanent exhibit of model clipper ships.
The Brown Gallery contains shipwreck and salvage items.
The Custom Collectors Office displays artifacts from far-away lands and a portrait collection of early Newburyport sea captains.
The Baker Gallery has a diorama of the Currier shipyard, a 19th century Newburyport shipyard which was the largest in the nation.
The Coast Guard Room has models of Coast Guard ships, historical artwork, photos of the Coast Guard in action.
The Marquand Library has an extensive collection of maritime literature ranging from 18th century sea captains to modern authors
Museum Address:
25 Water St.
Newburyport, MA United States
01950
Museum Website: [Web Link]
Cost: 7.00 (listed in local currency)
Hours of Operation:
May 17th to December 23rd
Tuesday - Saturday
10am to 4pm
Sunday & Holiday Mondays
12pm to 4pm
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