Hull Maritime Museum

The Hull Maritime Museum stands in the Dock Offices building, a Grade II* listed Victorian structure in Queen Victoria Square, Hull’s city centre. Built between 1867 and 1871 as the former headquarters of the Hull Dock Company, it now houses over 50,000 artefacts and documents tracing the city’s seafaring past. The museum opened in 1912 as the Museum of Fisheries and Shipping before moving to its current home in 1974. After a £11 million conservation programme, it reopened in August 2026 with a new exhibition floor, spiral staircase and glass atrium roof. The renovation included relocating storage and conservation facilities to adjacent Dock Office Chambers. Over 50,000 visitors passed through its doors in the first month, reflecting its renewed appeal. The museum’s exhibits span from the Bronze Age to the present, though its focus lies on Hull’s maritime history from the 19th century onward. A dedicated gallery explores the city’s Arctic whaling industry, which peaked in the early 19th century, featuring models, scrimshaw and a 40-foot North Atlantic right whale skeleton. Another gallery documents the North Sea fishing trade, using models of vessels from cobles to large trawlers. A third space highlights Hull’s long tradition of maritime commerce with Scandinavia and the Baltic, including a frieze of trade-related coats of arms in the former Court Room. Visitors find a mix of permanent and temporary displays across several themed galleries. The whaling gallery contains Inuit artefacts and a kayak alongside shipboard items and artwork. The fishing gallery uses detailed models to show the evolution of trawlers and their expanding range. The commercial gallery, once the Hull Dock Company’s Court Room, now hosts rotating exhibitions on trade history. Outside, Queen Victoria Square offers views across the city’s docks, linking the museum to Hull’s ongoing maritime identity. The building itself, with its Victorian grandeur, provides a fitting backdrop for the stories it tells.