The original Abbe Museum is located at Sieur de Monts Spring in Acadia National Park, as a seasonal facility dedicated to furthering the understanding and appreciation of Maine’s Native American cultures. It is temporarily closed for maintenance.
The Abbe Museum in Downtown Bar Harbor opened in September 2001.
In recent years, the Abbe has grown from a small trailside museum, privately operated within Acadia National Park, to an exciting contemporary museum in the heart of downtown Bar Harbor. In 2013, the Museum became the first and only Smithsonian Affiliate in the state of Maine.
At the Abbe's downtown museum, visitors find dynamic and stimulating exhibitions and activities interspersed with spaces for quiet reflection. The history and cultures of the Native people in Maine, the Wabanaki, are showcased through changing exhibitions, special events, teacher workshops, archaeology field schools, and workshops for children and adults. From spring through fall, the Abbe's historic trailside museum at Sieur de Monts Spring continues to offer visitors a step back in time to early 20th century presentations of Native American archaeology in Maine.
About the Wabanaki Nations: (
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Guided tours last about one hour with time after to revisit the galleries and gift shop.
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The museum in the streets panel in front of the downtown museum reads:
"The Abbe Museum & Congregational Church
The original Abbe Museum, which still exists at Sieur de Monts Spring, was founded by Dr. Robert Abbe, a surgeon from New York and a Bar Harbor summer resident, who assembled a collection of early Native American artifacts found in the Frenchman Bay area. Built in 1893 as a real estate and law office, this structure was purchased by the YMCA in the early 20th century. The YMCA added a gymnasium and pool. In 2001, the building opened as the Abbe Museum’s second location and offers changing exhibitions and an exciting programming schedule for all ages.
The Congregational Church across the street (dedicated in 1951) stands on the site of the first schoolhouse in Bar Harbor. The schoolhouse was moved to make way for a first church known as The Union Church, which was replaced by a lovely granite church in 1881 and sadly destroyed by fire in 1942."