New Bedford Whaling Museum

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Museum from the north side. The copper dome with whale weathervane is a symbol of the museum. Cobblestones are shown in the foreground.

The New Bedford Whaling Museum in New Bedford, Massachusetts is the largest museum in the United States devoted to preserving the history of the whaling industry.

The museum contains the most extensive collection of art, artifacts, and manuscripts related to whaling during the latter period of the age of sail in the late 19th century and into the early 20th century.

In 1903, The Old Dartmouth Historical Society was founded to preserve and promote historical research with respect to the area surrounding Dartmouth and New Bedford. This society established the Whaling Museum in 1907.

In 1996, the museum became a part of the New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, a newly formed national park which includes several New Bedford historical sites including the Seamen's Bethel, located across the street from the Whaling Museum.

The museum features a twenty-minute short film, courtesy of the National Park service. The film offers extensive content on the history of New Bedford's once great whaling industry of the 19th and 20th centuries. The film's name is "The City that Lit the World."