Kids enjoy making their own copper embossing of the ship. Courtesy USS Constitution Museum

Vision
The USS Constitution Museum ensures that the stories of USS CONSTITUTION and those who shaped her history are never forgotten, always remain relevant, and inspire as many people as possible.

Mission
The USS Constitution Museum serves as the memory and educational voice of USS CONSTITUTION, by collecting, preserving, and interpreting the stories of "Old Ironsides" and the people associated with her. We seek to create a positive, memorable experience for both children and adults by inspiring within them a love for the freedom that CONSTITUTION symbolizes. We will share CONSTITUTION's contributions with a global audience, and we will strive to be the best museum possible based on scholarship and innovative ways of sharing CONSTITUTION's stories.

History
The USS Constitution Museum was incorporated in 1972 as an interpretive complement to the active duty naval vessel USS CONSTITUTION. In 1976, the private, non-profit museum opened the doors in the present facility located just across the pier from the still floating USS CONSTITUTION. The Museum houses and displays artifacts related to the Ship’s history in interpretive exhibitions offering the context of USS CONSTITUTION's history. The founding of the Museum enabled the Ship to clear the decks of display cases so that visitors who tour aboard see a frigate ready to sail, rather than a floating museum.

A Marine in 1812 uniform explains the use of small arms in shipboard combat. Courtesy USS Constitution Museum

In 1974 the Charlestown Navy Yard closed as an active naval repair facility and the National Park Service took custody of one-third of the historic naval yard. The Museum secured an historic building to house the exhibitions and collections. The Museum soon established educational programs and a research library named in honor of Samuel Eliot Morison, the naval historian who cut the ribbon to open the Museum to the public in April 1976.

Since its founding, the Museum has continued to welcome the public and offer educational services to school children, families and adults. Visitation for the first twenty years, when the Museum had a nominal admission fee, averaged 60,000–75,000 per year. With the switch to free admission in 1997, the Museum’s visitation is now in the vicinity of 250,000–275,000 per year.

The Museum facility has expanded since 1976, nearly doubling in space as the Museum worked with the National Park Service to expand into two adjacent buildings and build a connector. All public spaces have been renovated within the last ten years, including galleries, reading room and research library, and the Museum also now has a state-of-the-art collections storage facility.

The Museum has also worked diligently to reach beyond its walls with educational outreach in classrooms and facilities across the country. By providing its award-winning curriculum free of charge to 12,000 teachers in all fifty states, plus twelve foreign countries, the Museum has shared the stories of USS CONSTITUTION nationwide. Through an innovative educational outreach program called "'Old Ironsides' Across the Nation," Museum staff and Navy crew take the stories of USS CONSTITUTION to students and citizens across the country, reaching 70,000 people in the first four years of a joint outreach program. This innovative model of reaching a national audience earned the USS Constitution Museum one of only three National Awards for Museum Service presented by First Lady Laura Bush at the White House in January, 2004.