USS Constitution Museum at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston

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See the Museums web page for an interactive location map.

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LOCATION

Charlestown Navy Yard, Building 22

MANAGEMENT AND WEBSITE

Though located on federal property at the Charlestown Navy Yard, the USS Constitution Museum is operated by a private nonprofit organization that works in partnership with the National Park Service. For more information on the museum, visit the USS Constitution Museum website.

The Museum and the actual USS Constitution ship are not operated by the same organization.

OPERATING HOURS AND FEES

• Open daily from 10 AM to at least 5 PM. Hours are extended to 6 PM during the summer
• Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s days. Closes at 2 PM on Christmas Eve.

Keep in mind that times can always change, so before making travel plans, be sure to get the current schedule on the USS Constitution Museum’s official Plan Your Visit web page.

There is no charge to enter the museum, though donations are highly welcome.

VISITING THE MUSEUM

Inside the USS Constitution Museum

The USS Constitution Museum at Boston National Historical Park is dedicated to the USS Constitution, one of the first six ships ever built for the United States Navy and the oldest naval ship in the world that is still in commission. Construction began in 1794 at the Edmund Hartt Shipyard in north Boston and was completed in November 1797. Now docked at the Charlestown Navy Yard just a stone’s thrown from the museum, the ship is open to visitors year-round.

The museum is much too large to give a play-by-play review of every exhibit, but suffice to say that everything you see will be related to the USS Constitution. There are two levels, with the lower level being more of a traditional museum and the upper level being an interactive exhibit called All Hands on Deck: A Sailor’s Life in 1812. While it is geared towards school-age visitors, everyone is invited and is sure to be educated and entertained.

Second floor exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum, All Hands on Deck: A Sailor’s Life in 1812

I started off by tackling the lower floor of the museum. What I liked most is the layout. There’s basically one way to go through the exhibits, and they follow a logical progression so you don’t get time periods and themes all jumbled up like you do in some museums. As would be expected, the exhibits begin by covering the ship’s inception and construction. This includes a short, animated video about the construction and launch of the ship.

Model of the hull of the USS Constitution on display at the USS Constitution Museum at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston

Exhibit on the early years of the USS Constitution at the USS Constitution Museum at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston

Visitors watching a video on the construction of the USS Constitution at the USS Constitution Museum at the Charlestown Navy Yard in Boston

The USS Constitution made its name in the War of 1812, fighting three battles with British warships and winning all of them. An entire exhibit room is dedicated to the ship’s role in the war. There are plenty of artifacts, memorabilia, and props to spice up the delivery of the information. The museum is very visually appealing.

Exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum about the battle between the USS Constitution HMS Guerriere

War of 1812 exhibit room in the USS Constitution Museum at Boston’s Charlestown Navy Yard

The rest of the lower level exhibits cover the life of the USS Constitution from after the War of 1812 to date. That sounds like a lot of time, but the ship was never again in any battles, spending most of the time patrolling the coast of Africa in search of slave and pirate ships. As technology developed, ships such as the Constitution became obsolete for the purposes of war. The final blow was the iron clad ships developed during the Civil War. The Constitution eventually became a museum ship in the early 1900s and has served in that role ever since.

Exhibits in the USS Constitution Museum covering the history of the USS Constitution after her war years

USS Constitution memorabilia on display in the USS Constitution Museum at Boston’s Charlestown Navy Yard

There is also an exhibit titled Old Ironsides 1812 Discovery Center that is geared towards younger visitors. There are plenty of games and interactive exhibits, both electronic and traditional, designed to teach everyone, not just children, about the War of 1812.

Old Ironsides 1812 Discovery Center at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

Interactive exhibit in the Old Ironsides 1812 Discovery Center at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

The first floor also has a movie theater where the 19-minute film All Hands on Deck plays continuously. It was shot on board the USS Constitution and follows a modern-day teenager as she roams below deck and meets a few historical characters, each who enlightens her about an aspect of the ship and its history. The film is intended for a middle school and high school age audience, but even adults and younger kids can enjoy it. There is no objectionable material.

The second floor of the USS Constitution Museum is devoted entirely to the All Hands on Deck exhibit. From its design, adults may be fooled into thinking that it is for children—and it certainly was designed with children in mind—but the information is for everyone. The focus is on the life of a U. S. Navy sailor in the early 1800s. A group of real-life sailors from the time are followed from when they first enlist until they are done with their service on the USS Constitution. One of the men actually wrote a book, so I assume much of the exhibit is based on his account.

Some of the characters of the All Hands on Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

Information about the food served on a ship at the All Hands on Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

Cardboard cutouts of the characters appear throughout the exhibit, and there are all sorts of interactive games and quizzes.

All Hands On Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

All Hands On Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum about the dilemmas faced by sailors

Kids can dress up in sailor clothes from the 1800s, and everyone can lie in a hammock just like the sailors who served on the USS Constitution.

Lie in a hammock just like sailors on the USS Constitution at theAll Hands On Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

At the end of the exhibit you get to find out what happened to the men after their stint in the Navy.

Find out what happened to the characters at the end of theAll Hands On Deck exhibit at the USS Constitution Museum in Boston

There is also an 8-minute multi-media presentation that incorporates the same group of sailors. The show is comprised of historical photographs and live video of actors playing the parts of the sailor characters. The action takes place on August 19, 1812, the day that the USS Constitution battled the British Navy frigate HMS Guerriere. This is the first ship the Constitution fought in the War of 1812. There is some blood shown on a dead sailor and mention of bones, brains, and legs covering the deck of the Guerrierre, so the show is not for toddlers. I’d rate it a very light PG, good for kids 10 and older.

SCHEDULING YOUR TIME

I gave the USS Constitution Museum a thorough going over, reading all of the exhibits on both floors. It took me an hour to cover the first floor, though I did not watch All Hands on Deck. The theater had technical difficulties on the day I visited, but I did pick up a DVD and watched it at home.

There is not quite as much information to read at the All Hands on Deck exhibit, for much of it is interactive games and tests. I spent a half hour, which included watching the multi-media presentation. Thus, I would have spent two hours at the USS Constitution Museum had the All Hands on Deck film been showing. Of course most people have no desire to read every information panel, see every film, and play around with every interactive exhibit as I did, so I suspect that an hour will be sufficient for most visitors.

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