16 Oct Museum to close Nov. 15 for renovations

Collections Registrar Allison Kohne moves museum artifacts from collections storage to prepare for upcoming construction at the museum.

The museum will close temporarily for construction updates needed to maintain its collections.

The museum will close to the public beginning Nov. 15 to update its HVAC system. This important project will ensure the temperature and humidity within the facility are maintained at consistent levels to keep the collections safe and secure for future generations.

The museum library is currently closed for preliminary work in advance of the construction. The Port of Call Museum Store will remain open through Dec. 8 for holiday shopping. The Harvey W. Smith Watercraft Center will be open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. during our closure. A reopening date some time in 2025 has not yet been finalized.

To prepare for the work, museum staff members are relocating museum artifacts to secure and environmentally sound locations to ensure their preservation during renovation. Due to limited space available for safe storage, the museum is unable to accept new artifacts into the collections during the closure. Collections staff will be available to meet with potential donors during this time and will resume accepting physical artifacts once a reopening schedule is finalized.

During the facility’s closure, museum educators will continue working to share the coast’s history, culture and environment both online and in person. Virtual programs, events at the Watercraft Center and curator-led outreach and field programs will remain available to the general public, schools and groups.

The public programs scheduled this year will still be offered; however, a few will move to new locations. Specifically, the Maritime Heritage Series lectures will be hosted in the auditorium at Fort Macon State Park in nearby Atlantic Beach; other programs will be moved to the museum’s Watercraft Center. Plans for the Annual Wooden Boat Show, held each year on the first Saturday in May, are moving forward and the free event is still scheduled for May 3, 2025. Additional programs scheduled for 2025 will be posted on our programs page.