This is one of the most interesting places around. If you are there when the owner is, he will give you a tour. Great for kids also
This museum is extremely well done. Great artifacts and information, kept clean. I wish they had more space because I think the exhibits could be great. Wish there was more story telling about the artifacts. Wish there were better directions at the location for where the actual door/entrance is to the second floor museum. This is a good 30/45 minute detour in between OC and the Delaware beaches. Amd for the littl kids there is the city playground one block north.
We miss going to this museum in particular because the owner is so exuberant in his enthusiasm for diving and exploring into historical shipwrecks. His experience includes dives on the Spanish Galleon Atocha and the SS Central America to name just a few. The displays are wonderful historical examples of what can be found on the bottom of the sea as well as wonderful treasures that lie there. This museum is absolutely a MUST SEE for all who venture to Fenwick Island, Delaware on the east coast between Ocean City Maryland and Bethany Beach Delaware. Salutes to the museum and staff for their wonderful and effective educational efforts. What a Gem of a Place run by wonderful people!!! It is the upper floor of Sea Shell City shop.
I was impressed with this very small, yet interesting, shipwreck museum. Information was posted about each featured shipwreck and I learned a lot! It's a pretty neat place to bring children who might not have the longest attention span for larger museums.
This is a great little museum hidden away above a souvenir shop. The wife and I took the kids (7, 7, 5 and 2 years old) to check it out on our way home from OCMD and were pleasantly surprised by all of the interesting things they had on display. Something for everyone to enjoy and the price can't be beat. (Did I mention it is free?) I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for something to do on a rainy day, anyone on their way out of OCMD or to any history buffs that find themselves in the area. A must see in Fenwick Island DE.
The owner is one of the nicest people you will meet. He will take the time to explain what he does to salvage the treasures on display. The display cases are overflowing with artifacts. It is truly amazing to see. In the shell shop downstairs they sell a wall map of all the shipwrecks of the cost and he has dived on many of them. I found the place by accident, stopping in the shell shop to look around. I always bring friends to see the place when they come to visit us.
Be prepared to have your sandals blown off by this place! Located over a tired little tourist trap selling trinkets is a mind blowing chance to experience history. The museum is organized by shipwrecks and dates; you will see everything from titanic china to gold bars. These items were all recovered by the owner, and if you're very lucky he will be there to personally talk about where the items come from as well as how he came to find them and actually retrieve them. Children just seem to love this place (including my "child" - my husband). I was in awe of the amount of things to read, peruse and learn in each display. I think you need more than one visit to really take it all in. And the entire exhibit is free - I would gladly have paid, but it's obvious the owner is passionate about not only what he does but sharing it with everyone. This is a beach must do!!
This museum is in the upstairs of "Shell City" which happens to have a plethora of Shells and other beach town nick-knacks. The museum is actually very impressive with items from shipwrecks across the world. They offer some real buried treasure for sale and some oddities that make you smile, but may leave children believing some of the mystery. Well worth a stop, especially if you have ever dreamed of finding treasure yourself.
I previewed the Museum through Trip Advisor and it’s website before going to Fenwick Island. I was very excited to hopefully meet Mr. Clifton if he would happen to be there at the time to hear his stories and adventures. When we went we were fortunate to not only have him there, but also give us more than an hour of his time to show us around the museum and educate us on the various shipwrecks and exhibits. He showed us some items that are not normally on display and allowed us to hold gold pieces he had recovered that included a 10 foot gold chain! One of our lucky group was privileged to sample Rum recovered from a wreck in the 1700’s. We were all in awe of not only the artifacts on display, but the history of each as Mr. Clifton spoke to us. He is truly trying to educate and preserve our past for generations to come. Keeping in mind this is not a heavily advertised museum and is actually located above a Sea Shell Souvenir store. There is not a fee for the museum but you can make a small donation.
IT'S FREE--GET OUT OF DODGE!!! Loved the stories told from all the shipwrecks discovered. Everything was displayed well and it was small and cozy so you could take an hour or so to see everything. But not so small you were bumping into people. Made me want to go out an go discover something!