Wisconsin Maritime Museum
The Wisconsin Maritime Museum is a museum in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, U.S., that depicts the maritime heritage of the Great Lakes. Founded in 1968 as the Manitowoc Maritime Museum, the facility opened in 1969 in the former YMCA of Manitowoc. In 1991, it relocated to a new, building. The museum is the site of a large collection of Great Lakes maritime history, original artifacts, and nautical archaeology.
The museum was founded by former submariners and civic leaders who wanted to bring a World War II submarine to Manitowoc to commemorate the role the city played in building submarines and supporting the war effort. In 1970, the United States Navy donated the USS Cobia to the museum, the same type of submarine constructed in Manitowoc during the war. Cobia is permanently berthed in the Manitowoc River adjacent to the museum.
