Museum Profile
Cape Ann Museum
The Cape Ann Museum tells multiple stories, all relating to a single remarkable place: Cape Ann. From its earliest days as a fishing and shipping port to its mid-19th century role in the granite industry, to its singular charms of light and sea that have attracted countless artists from the 19th century to the present, Cape Ann boasts a rich and varied culture of nationally significant historical, industrial, and artistic achievement. The Museum's fine art collection includes the largest grouping of works by native son and renowned maritime artist, Fitz Henry Lane (1804-1865), as well as work by other prominent painters and sculptors who lived on, visited or were inspired by Cape Ann. The work of contemporary Cape Ann artists is also collected and exhibited. In addition to fine art, the permanent collection includes artifacts from the fishing and granite quarrying industries, furniture, decorative arts, an extensive research library and archives, historic photographs and two historic homes.
Founded in 1873 as the Cape Ann Scientific and Literary Association, today the Museum is a vibrant cultural center that includes both permanent and special exhibition galleries, an auditorium, a library/archives, a children's activity center, two sculpture gardens and two historic homes. In addition to its permanent collections, the Museum offers a rotating schedule of special exhibitions throughout the year as well as related programs and events.
