custom house maritime museum

sweetjayne7

If you're into nautical items/history, you'll enjoy this museum. I brought my friend and her daughter who were visiting from Florida and they enjoyed it. I live in Newburyport and I like to stroll thru every so often as well. They also have a nice gift shop with reasonably priced nautical items.

susanw452

This museum is a gem. The old customs house holds so much interesting local history. Even the building itself has an interesting story. I also like the interactive activities for children in the basement.

niceguy42

The tour guide spent over an hour with us and It was wonderfully knowledgable. I could tell he was delighted with our obvious enthusiasm. We got a very good and interesting lesson in great detail. Will go back next time, just to review what I missed and enjoy it over again.

etak14

We had a wonderful tour with Ron, he was very interesting and knowledgable. The exhibits in the museum were laid out well.

Auxlius

A very interesting place with stories of locals and neat artifacts from all over the world that passed through this 19th century costumes house. Tours are free and helpful, can get a bit dull.

JudithK571

I did not take the tour, did not look interesting. The staff however was very polite and helpful as we looked in the gift shop.

maryg505

Beautiful gift shop, reasonable admission, lots of artifacts. We loved the shop dog, Diego. We picked up a lovely compass there for our son.

ovolacto

This is a very interesting, and informative museum. First of all, it was built way back when to be "fireproof" after the original building burned down. They have a vast collection of artifacts, including a pair of those teeny tiny shoes Chinese women used to wear when footbinding was popular. This museum is a treat for anyone interested in any kind of history, but the focus is on sailing. Check out the "knots" wall hanging displaying every kind of knot a sailor needed to know. It's amazing.

1954bratt

Being from West Texas (where the most water we ever saw was in the bathtub), I find most all things nautical of great interest. Built in 1835, The Custom House was the center of commerce in Newburyport. Great collection of items depicting the history of life, commerce, and adventure on the high seas is not to be missed.

ConnieH509

Downtown Newburyport. 2 floors of artifacts and stories regarding nautical history of the area. Gift shop. Building has held private and fundraising events there to support the museum. Very close to the first U.S. Coast Guard Station. If you are a boating enthusiast, you MUST also go to Lowell's Boat Shoppe on Main Street, Amesbury, just 5 minutes from here.

patrickr352

What a neat museum, the building is really cool, and the exhibits were informative, but not too much... Great for kids with some interactive stuff as well to do!

motherbored

While staying with friends who live in Newburyport, we all visited the Custom House Maritime Museum. It is a sweet, small museum with a rich history. The museum has several floors of small rooms and exhibits. Each room is steeped in history and has a theme: ship building, ship models, maps, cargo, food, ship wrecks, and a library. Even if you have lived in New England your entire life, you will surely pick up new and interesting facts about the history of the colonies and Newburyport's important roll.The docents are very friendly and knowledgeable. Lots of steps and uneven flooring, so not sure how handicap-accessible the museum is. Here is a link to the museum's web site: http://www.customhousemaritimemuseum.orgThe days and hours vary depending on the time of year.I believe they have activities for children as well.

CarolineMR

We had a great visit today with a docent tour. I normally am not a fan of tours but the gift shop woman talked us into it and he was great. He took time to answer our questions and those of other visitors. Its not huge, but it had amazing exhibits. We found out that the US Coast Guard started in Newburyport. They had signatures of John Hancock and George Washington. Educational and very interesting. Great for all ages, they had a small childrens area as well.

edoug21

The Custom House is an a fabulous old building, you'll admire the architecture as much as the historical objects within. Very interesting local maritime history, including maps and photos of all the North Shore shipwrecks over the years. It's a small museum, so you won't need much time. Right on the boardwalk and main street for easy access.

PortiaAnn

It is located in a very historic custom house building . The museum charts Newburryport's history as one of the most important early United States ports. A nice gift shop too. This port is supposed to be the place where the U.S. Coast Guard was established. Good for middle schoolers to adults.