Door County Maritime Museum

The Door County Maritime Museum sits along the Sturgeon Bay waterfront with four galleries showing lighthouses, model ships, shipwrecks, and tools from local shipbuilding. The complex also includes a 10-story lighthouse tower with an observation deck.

The museum opened in 1969 and moved to its year-round Sturgeon Bay location in 1997. The addition of the 10-story lighthouse tower in 2020 represented a major expansion of the facility.

The museum tells stories of the people who shaped these waters: fishermen, captains, craftspeople, and lighthouse keepers who shaped maritime traditions across generations. Visitors learn how their daily work and skills defined the region.

The museum is open year-round, so visitors should expect different conditions depending on the season. An elevator accesses the lighthouse tower observation deck, making it accessible.

Visitors can board the restored 149-foot tugboat John Purves to explore engine rooms, crew cabins, and the wheelhouse. Guided tours last about 40 minutes and reveal how the vessel operated.

Location: Sturgeon Bay

Inception: 1969

Website: http://dcmm.org

GPS coordinates: 44.83030,-87.38290

Latest update: December 6, 2025 17:45