The Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum - Our Nautical Heritage

A seaside adventure awaits each visitor to the Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum. Step back in time and enjoy the resort’s colorful past. The museum is enjoyed by thousands of visitors each year. Located on the Boardwalk at the Inlet, the museum is housed in a historic Life-Saving Station, one of the oldest and most architecturally beautiful buildings in Ocean City.

Ocean City History

Beautiful image panels recall Ocean City’s unique history and heritage. A touch of nostalgia is shown in the Sentimental Journey display. Time Moves On depicts the moving of the Life-Saving Station to its present location. It Was The Hardest Life tells the story of the commercial pound fishing industry, the economic backbone of the early village, through the use of rare photographs and informative text. The aftermath of the two Great Storms that influenced Ocean City’s growth are shown along with A Bird’s Eye View of the community, past and present.

Wreck in the Offing

The Ocean City Life-Saving Station Museum now offers Wreck in the Offing, a vivid exhibit of the life and times of the United States Life-Saving Service on the Delmarva Peninsula. The exhibit depicts the perils of the shipwrecked and the heroics of the surfmen on these once desolate barrier islands. Over 5,700 people were rescued from over 300 shipwrecks off the coast of Ocean City and adjacent islands. The exhibit tells of the many courageous efforts by the life-savers against the forces of nature.

History Recovered from the Sea and A Time Capsule from the Sea are collections donated to the museum by renowned deep-sea divers. Many artifacts recovered from the famous shipwreck Andrea Doria (1956) are on display. Get a close-up look at artifacts taken from the S-5 submarine (1920), the armored cruiser USS San Diego (1918) and the Empress of Ireland (1914), upon which over 1,000 lives were lost. See general merchandise recovered from the Eureka, which sank in 1888. Davy Jones’ Locker exhibits many interesting items, including a large assortment of chinaware and port lights recovered from shipwrecks off the Maryland, Delaware and Virginia coastline.

Saltwater Aquariums

Marine life indigenous to the local waters can be seen swimming in our saltwater aquariums. At any given moment you might spot a variety of crabs, flounder, sea bass, seahorses, sea robin and other interesting creatures of the sea. A shark jaw exhibit is also of interest.

Dollhouses

Dollhouses of the resort’s once gracious hotels and notable businesses are mixed in among antique Boardwalk souvenirs. Laughing Sal, a larger-than-life fun house attraction, still entertains people of all ages. There is a large collection of both mermaid likenesses and an interesting collection of Sands from Around the World.

Cooling Breezes

The exhibit entitled Cooling Breezes is quite colorful and shows a variety of early paper advertising hand fans popular from 1878 to present day.

Swimsuit Collection

Visitors to the museum will enjoy comparing swimsuits and beach accessories of the last century with those of today. The exhibit, which features both men’s and women’s bathing suits, usually brings back fond memories of a vacation at the beach.

Gift Shop

The museum gift shop offers many reasonably priced items. For your souvenir, choose from a selection of nautical gifts, books and other interesting items. All major credit cards are accepted.

Museum Hours

Admission. Museum hours: June through September, daily from 10 a.m. - 10 p.m.; May and October, daily, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.; November and December, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekends.