This is a fine museum dedicated to maritime interests in Door County. The staff is very enthusiastic about the topic, and it shows. The best feature is the tugboat tour, but the museum (located in a 10 story tower) is interesting as well. Well worth a visit. The gift shop is good too.

This is a wonderful museum on the Sturgeon Bay waterfront that educates the visitors about boats, ships, and lighthouses, and the people who’ve built and operated them through the years. We toured the new tower first (with great views from the top), and then the older section with the wonderful boat exhibits, beautiful mural, videos, and interactive displays about the many shipwrecks and how to operate a boat safely and competently. Right before they closed we bought a T-shirt in the nice gift shop, where the friendly employee told us we could come back the next morning for the tugboat tour. We did, and the competent tour guide (who had been a boat operator himself) showed us the 149-foot John Purves Tugboat that had been restored after being built in 1919 and traveling long distances in dangerous waters. Usually seeing only small tugboats in the Savannah River, we were amazed that this very large one was designed for a 13-man crew for long trips and had private bedrooms and bathrooms, a full kitchen, and a large engine room. (We read recently on the website that this tugboat is being repaired and will be open for guests again May 1.) This is a high quality museum, and we enjoyed our time there!

I have to start this off by commending the staff at the gift shop and the museum entrance desk! Try are pleasant, informative, and very welcoming to the museum and Sturgeon Bay area. When arrived in town on 5/31 this was a stop we made first off because we had items to donate to the museum. The curator and others seemed very happy to receive my husband's 50 year old US Coast Guard uniforms. We wanted to have ample time to checkout the entire museum and it was late in day. We should have done the museum before checking out Door County because the museum offers history of the entire area, not just the maritime history. We enjoyed the entire museum immensely on 6/3. All of the areas were done very nicely and we especially enjoyed all the interactive areas. The Sturgeon Bay area and Door County have a lot to be proud of here.

First, you go to the top of the tower and it has a beautiful view. Then you work down the tower one floor at a time to enjoy the museum with wonderful exhibits. I lived in Sturgeon Bay 37 years and learned so much in a little over an hour. This is a must visit when visiting Sturgeon Bay. Also, view the tower at night when it’s lit up.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much there was to see. I’m into nautical stuff so I found it a great place. Just a short motorcycle ride from where I live which is Green Bay. I recently moved to WI from western Nebraska. So much to explore in Door County

Glad we visited this museum. The experience starts with an interesting video then an elevator ride to near the top of the old lighthouse. We enjoyed the views from the tenth-floor outdoor observation deck. Each floor on the way back down is dedicated to a specific aspect of maritime history. A little exercise for body and mind.