Established in the 1930’s by Archer Milton Huntington and Homer L. Ferguson, the Mariner’s Museum is a truly impressive collection of world Maritime History.
Boasting over 60,000 square feet of interior exhibit space, and a 550-acre park with well-maintained walking trails, the museum has plenty to do no matter the weather - the establishment has the largest maritime library in the western hemisphere. With such a wealth of information and activities, if you want to fully explore the museum, it would be best to plan more than one day there.
After leaving the admission lobby, the first thing a visitor will see upon entering the museum proper is a gigantic eagle figurehead. Made for the USS Lancaster in 1880, the figurehead weighs 3,200 pounds, and gives a taste of the kind of grandeur and quality present in the rest of the museum’s exhibits.
Permanent collections include exhibitions that cover the development of man’s attempt to travel over the oceans, naval history, the International Small Craft Center (where a large selection of real watercraft from around the world have been collected), the Great Hall of Steam (a room of miniature steam vessels from history), and the Miniature Ships of August F. Crabtree (tiny and incredibly detailed ships made by one man and his wife).
While many museums are targeted towards a specific (usually very young) age group, the Mariner’s Museum has something for everyone. With use of both replicated and original artifacts, hands on activities, videos, large scale reproductions, and information plates abounding, a visitor can get deeply involved in as many ways as they choose without feeling patronized.