Dossin Great Lakes Museum

Dossin Great Lakes Museum Showcasing the story of the Great Lakes and Detroit’s role in regional and national maritime history and Marlene L. City of Detroit III, the S.S.
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Located on Strand Drive on Belle Isle, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum is dedicated to showcasing the story of the Great Lakes, with a special emphasis on Detroit’s role in regional and national maritime history. Permanent exhibits include Built by the River in the John A. Boll Foundation Gallery, the Miss Pepsi vintage championship hydroplane, the Gothic Room from the S.S. William Clay Ford pilot h

ouse, and one of the largest known collections of scale model ships in the world. Significant artifacts include a bow anchor from the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald and an 18th century British canon salvaged from the Detroit River. Visit http://detroithistorical.org/dossin-great-lakes-museum/exhibitions for a full list of exhibitions.

Now open in DeRoy Hall! Blind Pigs and Bootleggers: Michigan Women During Prohibition highlights untold stories of women...
05/24/2026

Now open in DeRoy Hall! Blind Pigs and Bootleggers: Michigan Women During Prohibition highlights untold stories of women smugglers, homebrewers, and speakeasy owners in Southeast Michigan in the era when alcohol was banned nationally. Learn more: https://bit.ly/4egSSfw

We're OPEN today and will be OPEN again from 1-5 pm tomorrow with special Memorial Day hours.

👀 We're looking for YOUR original mural design for our west-facing wall! Remiders:✔️ Original work only✔️ Sized for a 4:...
05/23/2026

👀 We're looking for YOUR original mural design for our west-facing wall! Remiders:

✔️ Original work only
✔️ Sized for a 4:1 ratio
✔️ Multiple mediums welcome
✔️ Free to enter
✔️ Honorarium for the selected artist

More details at detroithistorical.org/mural

🎨 Picture your art on this wall! We're looking for original artwork to turn into a paint-by-number style mural on the west-facing wall of the Dossin Great Lakes Museum. The selected artist will receive a stipend and participate in a community painting project to create the mural this summer.

Learn more and submit your design at detroithistorical.org/mural

05/16/2026

Thanks for stopping by! Yep, you can learn about Great Lakes history, shipwrecks, and walk the pilot house of a real freighter at the museum.

☝️ We're now open with our extended summer hours. Visit Wednesday to Sunday on Belle Isle. More details: https://bit.ly/31ByWgI

🌤️ Even though it doesn't quite feel like it yet, today is the first day of our extended hours for the summer! Visit us ...
05/13/2026

🌤️ Even though it doesn't quite feel like it yet, today is the first day of our extended hours for the summer! Visit us Wednesday - Sunday on Belle Isle. More details to plan your visit: https://bit.ly/31ByWgI

Submissions are OPEN through June 1! Send us your original design concept and it could become a new mural on the museum.
05/06/2026

Submissions are OPEN through June 1! Send us your original design concept and it could become a new mural on the museum.

With two great museums, the Detroit Historical Society offers engaging opportunities to learn about and explore the city's rich history, from its automotive legacy to its maritime heritage.

Opening on May 19! From high-speed automobile chases on the streets of Wyandotte to infamous Hamtramck cabarets, Blind P...
05/01/2026

Opening on May 19! From high-speed automobile chases on the streets of Wyandotte to infamous Hamtramck cabarets, Blind Pigs and Bootleggers: Michigan Women During Prohibition will highlight the untold stories of women smugglers, homebrewers, and speakeasy owners.

More details: https://bit.ly/4egSSfw

On May 1, 1918, Detroit became the first major U.S. city to go “dry” when Michigan enacted statewide prohibition, banning the sale and manufacture of alcohol.

Discover the untold stories of Michigan women who defied the alcohol ban in the new exhibition “Blind Pigs and Bootleggers: Michigan Women During Prohibition,” opening on May 20 at the Dossin Great Lakes Museum.

📸 Detroit Free Press clipping from May 1, 1918.

📣 Calling all Southeast Michigan artists! This summer, we’re looking for a bold, original, full-color artwork that will ...
04/24/2026

📣 Calling all Southeast Michigan artists! This summer, we’re looking for a bold, original, full-color artwork that will be brought to life as a paint-by-number style community mural on the west facing wall of the museum.

✔️ Original work only
✔️ Sized for a 4:1 ratio
✔️ Multiple mediums welcome
✔️ Free to enter

Make your mark on Detroit history! Artists are encouraged to draw inspiration from Detroit’s rich maritime heritage and surrounding natural environment, capturing what makes Detroit’s relationship to the water so distinctive. Find full submission details and enter your design by June 1 at detroithistorical.org/mural

Did you know that the J.W. Westcott Co. is still a family business? Reaching back to when Captain John Ward Westcott sta...
04/17/2026

Did you know that the J.W. Westcott Co. is still a family business? Reaching back to when Captain John Ward Westcott started as a marine reporter in 1874, the Westcott - Detroit's "floating zip code" - delivers mail and essentials to Great Lakes vessels during the shipping season, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

📬 Learn more in our new exhibition, Mail By the Pail, open now! More details: https://bit.ly/4g0nHnC

04/03/2026

⚓️🌷 Special hours! Please note that we're OPEN as usual today and tomorrow but will be CLOSED on Sunday 4/5 for Easter.

Address

100 Strand Drive # 3
Detroit, MI
48207

Opening Hours

Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 1pm - 5pm

Telephone

(313) 833-1805

Website

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