Michigan Maritime Museum welcomes visitors after $3.6 million rebuild
SOUTH HAVEN, Mich. — History and boating enthusiasts could visit one of South Haven's most beloved attractions year round.
The Michigan Maritime Museum reopened its campus in August after a nearly year-long rebuild. A grand opening of the new $3.6 million Maritime Heritage Center took place on Sept., 30, 2022.
The brand-new, 17,000-square-foot building is located at the site of the old museum at 260 Dyckman Avenue, right next to the draw bridge. The two-story building features exhibit spaces, a large atrium, a classroom, and learning center, plus conference rooms and offices for museum staff.
"This represents a really big step up for us as an organization and what we can do," Eric Harmsen, administration and curatorial specialist, said.
The museum's first exhibition since reopening offers guests a glimpse back into the early 1900s during the era of passenger steamships on Lake Michigan. "Full Steam Ahead: The Golden Age of Great Lakes Passenger Steamships," highlights the City of South Haven, a passenger steamship that linked South Haven to Chicago.
"A lot of people are just really surprised by the number and size of ships that were here in South Haven and other cities on the Great Lakes," Harmsen said. "Right here on the Black River there were passenger steamships coming and going during the summers for several decades in the early 1900s."
The new expanded campus also allows for some of the museum's acquisitions previously in storage to be put on full display.
"Now we have the space and the facilities to make an exhibit out of the antique and small boats in our collection," Harmsen said.
While the museum campus will be open year round, its on-water experiences have mainly concluded for the season. Lindy Lou river cruises will still be available for a few more weeks.
This past weekend, museum staff, and volunteers started the process of down rigging their most popular vessel, Friends Good Will.
Sails, rigging and other equipment is stripped from the replica 1810 top sail sloop to be inspected, repaired and stored for the season.
The ship's mast will also be removed within the next few weeks for inspection and repair, a process which happens every 5 years.
The Michigan Maritime Museum's October hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with last admission at 3 p.m.. Adult admission costs $12 during the summer, and $10 during the winter.
