Martha's Vineyard Museum Information

The Martha’s Vineyard Museum is a cultural and historical museum located in Vineyard Haven, MA. It was originally known as the Dukes County Historical Society but renamed the Martha's Vineyard Museum in 2006. Founded in 1922 and incorporated the following year, the Museum was originally based in Edgartown, MA at the historic Thomas Cooke House. Several structures were added to the Museum's Edgartown campus to meet its increasing needs. Realizing the need for more and better collection storage space, improved access, and additional space for exhibitions and public programming, the Museum purchased the former 1895 Marine Hospital in Vineyard Haven in 2011 following an extensive feasibility study.A $31 million capital campaign was quietly launched soon after to raise funds to renovate the historic structure and add onto it. The campaign went public in June 2016. The Museum broke ground on the new campus on Memorial Day weekend 2017 and construction began shortly after. A Certificate of Occupancy was issued in December 2018 for the new campus. The Museum had a soft opening to the public in its new home on March 13, 2019. A larger grand opening weekend was held in June 2019, coinciding with the opening of the blockbuster exhibit Benton’s Martha’s Vineyard, which featured works by artist Thomas Hart Benton. Portions of the original Museum campus in Edgartown were sold as part of the move to Vineyard Haven, but the Museum maintains ownership of the historic Cooke House and the surrounding property. The grounds have been transformed into beautiful gardens to create the Cooke House and Legacy Gardens.