Ribbon Cutting and Community Open House

The Wooden Boat Show may be one for the record books for 2017 but the Harbor Historical Association and the South Carolina Maritime Museum are ready to celebrate their next event! On Saturday, December 2 the doors will open on the newly renovated and expanded Museum at 729 Front Street.

The Community Open House will begin at 10 am with a festive Ribbon Cutting by the Museum Board and the Georgetown County Chamber of Commerce. The open house will continue until 2 pm.

New exhibits on the Maritime Museum’s first floor and the expansive “Shipwrecks of South Carolina” exhibit on the new second floor will be featured. Historians familiar with the many exhibits in the museum will be on hand to bring history to life.

The South Carolina Maritime Museum began in a single room in the current Chamber of Commerce building in 1996 to preserve and promote the maritime history of Georgetown and South Carolina. In 2011, the Board of the Harbor Historical Association (the SCMM’s parent non- profit) purchased the first floor of 729 Front Street and began expanding the available exhibits. In the past six years, the Museum has outgrown its space as it acquired the magnificent Fresnal lens formerly housed in the North Island Lighthouse, and multiple model replicas of historical vessels such as the Hunley, the City of Georgetown, the Harvest Moon and the Planter.

Because of these and other acquisitions, it became apparent there was a lack of available space to properly serve the public for viewing. In 2017, the Board was able to secure a loan to purchase the entire building, along with the contiguous boat slips and parking lot, and begin renovations. What is being celebrated on the 2nd of December is the culmination of these dreams and the presentation of the “new” facility in heart central Georgetown for residents and tourists alike.