Arklow Heritage Museum

Over het museum

Arklow Heritage Museum, formerly the Arklow Maritime Museum, began in the early 1970s when local people realised that the souvenirs and seafaring objects kept in the town’s houses were being thrown away as the economy improved. Exhibitions held around 1970 and in March 1973 showed how much survived and how good it was, and a committee set out to find a permanent home.

The museum opened its doors in February 1976 in two rooms of the former technical school on St Mary’s Road, and its collection grew through loans and donations. It later moved to its present home in the Bridgewater Shopping Centre on North Quay. In 2025 it took the name Arklow Heritage Museum to reflect a wider focus on the town’s whole history, and it marked its fiftieth anniversary in 2026.

The displays centre on Arklow’s boatbuilding, lifeboat and fishing traditions. They include photographs of the port from the mid-19th century, models of vessels built in Arklow, tools, navigational equipment, paintings and items connected with Sir Francis Chichester’s yacht Gypsy Moth III. Other themes include shipwrecks and rescues, the Lusitania survivors rescued by Arklow fishermen, the RNLI, fishermen’s folklore and the history of the town’s industries.

Hoogtepunten

• Photographs of Arklow harbour from the mid-19th century
• Models of ships built in Arklow and items linked to Gypsy Moth III
• Operational model of a trawler’s wheelhouse controls, popular with children
• Displays on lifeboats, shipwrecks and rescues, including the Lusitania
• Library, photographs and books for school projects and local research

Vaste collectie

• Arklow’s maritime and local heritage – Ship models, tools, navigational equipment, paintings and photographs show Arklow’s boatbuilding, fishing, lifeboat and wider local history, including objects linked to Gypsy Moth III.

Opgericht

1976

Toegangsprijzen & kortingen

The standard ticket is advertised as “from €7”.

Toegankelijkheid

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

Kinderen & gezin

Erg geschikt voor kinderen & gezinnen

The museum offers a family ticket and school visits; an operational model of a trawler’s wheelhouse is of particular interest to children.

Bereikbaarheid & parkeren

The museum is in the Bridgewater Shopping Centre on North Quay; look for the red sea mine that marks the entrance. From the M11 take junction 20 (Arklow North) or junction 21 (Arklow South) onto the R772.

Service & horeca

The museum is beside a café and a restaurant in the Bridgewater Centre.

Evenementen & zaalverhuur

Het museum heeft hierover geen informatie gepubliceerd.

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