5,000 Images, 600 Artifacts, One Medal of Honor. Coast Guard Unveils New Museum Details

Published Aug 5, 2026, 7:42 AM EDT

Adm. Kevin Lunday calls it "a permanent tribute to the Long Blue Line."

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Published Aug 5, 2026, 7:42 AM EDT

New details are being rolled out about the nation's first museum dedicated to the Coast Guard, opening one year from today. The U.S. Coast Guard on Tuesday announced that the National Coast Guard Museum, described as a museum "dedicated to preserving and sharing the history, heritage and enduring missions" of the service, will open to the public during the week of Aug. 2, 2027, two days prior to the Coast Guard’s Aug. 4. The museum, currently being built along the Thames River waterfront in New London, Conn., will consist of 80,000 square feet and reportedly feature five public decks with three exhibit floors, five thematic experience wings, a rotating gallery for special exhibitions, educational classrooms, and event space.