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The logo for Common Ground. A mosaic of different peoples faces throughout the ages.

What's Your Story?

The New Bedford Whaling Museum is collecting stories that help paint the picture of Greater New Bedford. By lending your voice, you will help create the collective story of the community.

Share Your Story

A drawing of a polar bear walking on a tightrope. There are ice caps in the water in the background.

POLAR BEARS (URSUS MARITIMUS) AND THE ARCTIC IMAGINARY

This exhibition showcases a cross-section of extraordinary artworks in order to reveal and explore humankind’s fascination with and relationship towards this vaunted and elusive species.

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An ultrawide painting of a sunset nature scene on a river. There is text that reads: "Re/Framing the View: Nineteenth-Century American Landscapes. October 28, 2022 - May 14, 2023. Wattles Jacobs Gallery, Lower Level.

Re/Framing the View

Go beyond the frame and explore the many meanings of the American landscape, both historically to nineteenth-century viewers and today for twenty-first century audiences.

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A photograph of a highly saturated coral reef with schools of fish swimming in the foreground and background. There is text in the middle that reads "Big blue pictures."

New 3D Theater Experience

Big Blue Pictures, a new immersive 3D theater experience at the New Bedford Whaling Museum, is the first and only 3D theater on the SouthCoast of Massachusetts.

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Whales Today

An exhibition dedicated to the science and behavior of whales, their cultural impact, the current threats to their survival, and empowering all to support conservation efforts.

Dive Deeper

What's Happening

COMMON GROUND: ARTS & CULTURE COMMUNITY STORIES

Sunday, April 2, 2023 | 4:00pm - 6:00pm

We invite you to a special program offered in concert with our Common Ground exhibition, where we hear from storytellers and invite you to reflect on and share your own connections to the SouthCoast. The event begins with stories in the Cook Memorial Theater, followed by a cocktail reception with lite bites and access to the exhibition space.

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CRANBERRY BOG WALK

Saturday, April 8 | 10:00 am - 11:00 am

Explore a local cranberry bog in Marion and take in the spectacular views of 23-acres of bogs surrounded by small ponds and upland forests. White Eagle supports a rich diversity of habitats including upland pine, mixed hardwood forest, shrub and wooded swamp, freshwater marsh and cranberry bogs. The White Eagle property and surrounding land make up a 482-acre contiguous parcel of land that is home to several rare and threatened species including the Easter Box Turtle, the Spotted Turtle and the Water-will Stem Borer (a type of moth).

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A TITANIC EVENT

Sunday, April 16, 2023 | 11:30 am

oin us on April 16th for a special anniversary screening of James Cameron’s TITANIC with pre-show food and activities inspired by the film. Hosted in collaboration with New Bedford Film Society and New Bedford Food Tours. The Whaling Museum doors open at 11:30 AM with pre-show programming and activities. Grab a period inspired snack provided by Scuttlebutt Coffee House, listen to a live violinist, and search for the “Heart of the Ocean” necklace in a scavenger hunt. Costumes Encouraged!

READING AMERICAN LANDSCAPES: WOMEN AND THE AMERICAN SCENE WITH NAOMI SLIPP

Thursday, April 20 | 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm

Join the New Bedford Whaling Museum’s Chief Curator Naomi Slipp, as she discusses the museum’s current exhibition, Re/Framing the View: Nineteenth-Century American Landscapes. Naomi will discuss how women of the nineteenth-century were faced with limited opportunities presented during their lifetimes, but how some carved out successful careers as professional artists painting landscapes and still lifes.

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DUNHAM’S BROOK CONSERVATION AREA WALK

Saturday, April 22 | 10:30 am - 12:00 am

This “Spring Awakening walk” at Dunham's Brook Conservation Area will highlight a range of diverse natural habitats. The trailhead crosses a small meadow before entering an extensive wet forest, a portion of which contains a beautiful boardwalk and provides excellent bird watching. The trail then rises onto a ridge which opens to a corn field and oak-holly forests. Although, the corn field is no longer in operation, it is now covered with winter rye as a way to revitalize the tired soil.

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Rotating Exhibitions

Check out what's on view right now at the Museum.

Exhibitions

Permanent Exhibitions

Spend an hour or spend a day at the Museum. There is always something to discover.

Heat Waves

Coming Soon

The Museum is always working on the next big exhibit to bring to our guests. Get a sneak peek at what we're creating for you.

Permanent Gallery spotlight 

Whales Today

An exhibition dedicated to the science and behavior of whales, their cultural impact, the current threats to their survival, and empowering all to support conservation efforts.

Online ticketing is now our primary method of selling admission. We have maximum capacity caps in effect at the Museum and tickets are sold on a first-come-first-served basis.

Adventures at sea, science, history, art, cookbooks, kids' books, and more — the Museum store has something for all the book lovers on your list.

Choose from prints available at 1000 Museums, or request prints of artworks in our collection.

Shop all of our gifts. The Museum store has hundreds of items available, you're sure to find the perfect gift for that special someone on your list!