Wisconsin Maritime Museum

The Wisconsin Maritime Museum connects all people with Wisconsin’s waterways, by engaging and educating the public about the Great Lakes, Wisconsin’s maritime history, Wisconsin’s World War II submarines and USS COBIA.

Exhibits

Our two floors of permanent galleries feature exhibits on the area's maritime and shipbuilding heritage, model ships, Wisconsin-built boats, steam engines, shipwrecks, and, of course, Wisconsin's 28 WWII submarines and USS COBIA. Our current temporary exhibits include a photography display on the Washington Island Ferry Line, as well a, a small exhibit featuring Wisconsin's Powerboat Pioneers. There are also areas especially for kids, including the ever-popular Waterways Room.

Guided tours of USS COBIA can be purchased at the Front Desk upon your arrival for $5 per person. Submarine tours begin on the top of every hour and last about 45 minutes. The submarine is only accessible via guided tour.

At 1:00PM, there is a free talk and closing reception for the Washington Island Ferry Line temporary exhibit. Representatives from the company will present some of their experiences working for many decades on the ferries. The photographer, Jim Legault, will also be present to answer questions about his works.

Participation in Museum Day is open to any tax-exempt or governmental museum or cultural venue on a voluntary basis. Smithsonian magazine encourages museum visitation, but is not responsible for and does not endorse the content of the participating museums and cultural venues, and does not subsidize museums that participate.