Thirty-five acres of brightly painted cottage dating back to mid 1800s; tour a gingerbread home; performances at the tabernacle. Visitors to the Cottage Museum can view the interior of a typical Campground cottage, complete with period furnishings offering a glimpse of life on the Campgrounds in the 1800s. Also on display are vintage photographs, a selection of stereoscopic photos of Cottage City and the Campgrounds, along with other interesting documents relating to the history of the Campground. Admission charge.

Egan Maritime Foundation at the Coffin School
4 Winter Street
Nantucket, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-2505

Open: Call for hours of operation

See Map

The Coffin School is an impressive example of Greek Revival-style architecture that retains its original details and now houses a spacious lecture/concert hall and exhibition galleries. The Coffin School collection includes early 19th-century portraits of prominent Nantucketers and works illustrating the history of the school. Includes works by island artist Elizabeth Rebecca Coffin and Rodney J. K. Charman, recording Nantucket's rich maritime history from the 17th century through the 19th century.

Maria Mitchell Association Natural Science Museum
7 Milk Street
Nantucket, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-0898

See Map

The historic Hinchman House property features a museum of natural history, focusing on plant and animal life on Nantucket. Classes, lectures, nature walks and other events are scheduled throughout the season. Gift shop. The museum is open seasonally but activities are offered year-round. Cost: Adults, $5; children, $4 children; passes to all Maria Mitchell Association museums: Adults, $15; Children, $10.

Martha’s Vineyard Museum
School and Cooke Streets
Edgartown, MA 02539
Phone: 508-627-4441 ext 120

Open: Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; weekdays by appointment only

See Map

The island's largest museum and its only research library dedicated to the history of the Vineyard. The collections include over 30,000 items relating to all aspects of life on Martha’s Vineyard, such as agricultural tools, archaeological material, paintings, prints and sculpture, baskets, coins, costumes, decoys, hunting and fishing and shell fishing tools, ethnographic material brought back from the all over the worlds by Vineyard whalers, armament, guns and swords, furniture and household equipment, medical and scientific tools and equipment, musical instruments, fossils and botanical samples, maritime-related tools, sailor’s artwork such as scrimshaw and inlaid work, ship models, shipwreck salvage materials, Wampanoag tools, woodworking tools, toys, a whaleboat, Nomansland fishing boat, wagon, sleigh, fire engine and an 1854 first order Fresnel Lens used in the Gay Head Aquinnah lighthouse for almost 100 years

Museum of African American History, Nantucket campus
29 York Street
Nantucket, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-9833

Open: July-August, Tuesday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.; Sunday, 1–3 p.m. Other months by appointment

See Map

The Museum of Afro-American History on Nantucket features two historic sites, the African Meeting House and the Florence Higginbotham House. These buildings were at the center of a thriving nineteenth-century African American community on the island. The Museum presents cultural programs and interpretive exhibits on the history of African Americans on Nantucket, and makes the African Meeting House available for ceremonies and special events. A project to preserve and restore the Florence Higginbotham House is underway with generous support from the Community Preservation Committee of Nantucket and the Tupancy-Harris Foundation. Free admission; donations welcome.

Nantucket Life Saving Museum
Polpis Road
Nantucket, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-1885

Open: May, Saturday and Sunday, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.; Memorial Day-Columbus Day, daily, 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

See Map

This museum is the recreation of the 1874 life guard station originally at this site. Admission charge.

Nantucket Lightship Basket Museum
49 Union Street
Nantucket, MA 02584
Phone: 508-228-1177

Open: Memorial Day weekend-Columbus Day weekend, Tuesday- Saturday, 10 p.m.–4 p.m.

See Map

Lightship baskets are unique to the island of Nantucket. The mseum exhibits and documents examples from the early 19th century to present-day creations. Throughout the season, the museum exhibits historical and contemporary baskets, provides demonstrations and lectures by experienced basket makers, weavers, historians, scrimshanders, and restoration experts. The museum also contains a large portion of the workshop of well known basket maker Jose Formoso Reyes (1902-1980). Exhibit changes annually. Admission: Adults, $4; reduced admission for seniors and children.

Quaker Meeting House
7 Fair Street
Nantucked, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-1655

Open April through October

See Map

Constructed in 1838 as a Friends school, the Quaker Meeting House provides an appropriate setting for presenting the story of Quakerism as a dominant social and economic force on Nantucket. Interpretive presentations are regularly scheduled. Admission charge.

Whaling Museum
13 Broad Street
Nantucket, MA 02554
Phone: 508-228-1736

Open: Open year-round, weekends during the winter

See Map

The museum features a 46-foot sperm whale skeleton, a restored 1847 spermaceti candle factory, exhibition space, and a fully accessible rooftop observation deck. The candle factory, built following Nantucket’s Great Fire in 1846, still has its original whale-oil beam press. In the museum’s Gosnell Hall, visitors will learn about the whale hunt and see the whale skeleton, a rigged whaleboat, a collection of whaling tools, and portraits of whaling captains and their wives. Interpretive talks and audiovisual programs are scheduled daily. The Peter Foulger Gallery showcases changing exhibits, and unique seasonal events. Other galleries throughout the museum’s include its world-famous collection of scrimshaw, Nantucket lightship baskets, the 1850 Fresnel lens from the Sankaty Lighthouse in Siasconset, and the restored 1881 town clock. Admission charge.