WASHINGTON — The United States Coast Guard has announced that the nation’s first National Coast Guard Museum will open to the public during the week of August 2, 2027. Opening events will culminate August 4, coinciding with the Coast Guard’s birthday.
Now under construction along the Thames River waterfront in New London, Connecticut, the 80,000-square-foot museum will preserve and present the history, heritage and continuing missions of the Coast Guard.
The museum will feature five public decks, three floors of exhibits, five themed experience wings, a rotating special-exhibition gallery, classrooms and event space.
Visitors will be able to explore more than 5,000 historic images, 600 artifacts and a range of interactive and hands-on exhibits highlighting the Coast Guard’s roles in lifesaving, national security, maritime commerce and emergency response.
Educational programs will cover science, technology, engineering and mathematics, as well as leadership, civics and maritime history.
Signature displays will include a suspended MH-60T Jayhawk helicopter with a life-size aircrew modeled after active-duty personnel from Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
The museum will also display the Medal of Honor awarded to Signalman First Class Douglas Munro, the Coast Guard’s only Medal of Honor recipient. Munro was posthumously honored for his heroism during the Battle of Guadalcanal in World War II.
Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Kevin E. Lunday said the museum will serve as a permanent tribute to generations of Coast Guard crews who saved lives, defended the nation’s maritime approaches, supported commerce and responded to crises.
The museum is scheduled to open exactly one year from the announcement, with its official opening celebration taking place on the Coast Guard’s birthday.