Wisconsin Maritime Museum building a new Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center in downtown Manitowoc

Brandon Reid, Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter
·2 min read
Rendering of the north facade of 1221 Franklin St., future home of Wisconsin Maritime Museum's Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.
Rendering of the north facade of 1221 Franklin St., future home of Wisconsin Maritime Museum's Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.

MANITOWOC — Wisconsin Maritime Museum has announced a major renovation of a property at 1221 Franklin St., which will it says will be the future home of the Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.

The Heritage Center will be a “hub for maritime preservation and education,” according to Wisconsin Maritime Museum Executive Director Catherine Green.

When complete, a news release said the center will include outdoor exhibits and a public garden, a state-of-the-art conservation laboratory, and a boatbuilding shop on a showcase campus within the larger urban renewal efforts along Franklin Street.

Rendering of the west facade of 1221 Franklin St., future home of Wisconsin Maritime Museum's Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.
Rendering of the west facade of 1221 Franklin St., future home of Wisconsin Maritime Museum's Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center.

The need to upgrade the outdated facility came after the Wisconsin Maritime Museum recently doubled its object collection and the facility became inadequate to house the newly acquired artifacts, the release said. That, coupled with the need to continue to grow the collection and offer expanded programming led the museum to take on the project, the release added.

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While construction is under way, the museum said contributions are still needed. More than $400,000 has been pledged to the project through support from the City of Manitowoc, The Ruth St. John and John Dunham West Foundation and the Fund for Lake Michigan.

Rendering of the Maritime Plaza Heritage Garden at 1221 Franklin St., Manitowoc.
Rendering of the Maritime Plaza Heritage Garden at 1221 Franklin St., Manitowoc.

The museum, however, is looking to raise an additional $400,000 to complete phase one of the project, which it says will lay the groundwork for all the aspects of preservation and education the museum will develop for the site over the next three years.

Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center graphic.
Wisconsin Maritime Heritage Center graphic.

For more about the project and how to donate, go to https://www.wisconsinmaritime.org/collections/franklin-st-redevelopment-project/.

For more about the Maritime Museum, which is at 75 Maritime Drive, call 920-684-0218 or go to wisconsinmaritime.org.

Contact Brandon Reid at 920-686-2984 or [email protected]. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @breidHTRNews.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Wisconsin Maritime Museum builds Maritime Heritage Center in Manitowoc

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