The National Coast Guard Museum (NCGM) team assigned to Coast Guard Headquarters is making tremendous strides in curating exhibits and programming to bring the museum experience to life through its website and social media channels. With that, the NCGM team is celebrating two recent, monumental achievements: the reveal of the NCGM’s official website and the launch of its social media accounts.
“This is an exciting time for the museum,” said Ken Hickman, NCGM deputy director. “We have the unique opportunity to offer Facebook and Instagram followers a glimpse into the history of the Coast Guard and behind-the-scenes access to the curation process of the exhibits and artifacts that will tell the service’s story. The website is an equally important tool because its final design will be that of a virtual experience as visitors await opening day.”
Building the foundation for a digital museum
The NCGM’s new website, which can be found at www.nationalcoastguardmuseum.org, is being built in two phases.
“Phase 1 revolved around rooting the website into a strong foundation,” said Dwight Martino, the NCGM’s visual information specialist. “From there, we can build a robust and expressive online museum experience. We are starting with the Pentagon Experience exhibit, an overview of the Coast Guard's history, which is on display at the Pentagon, but will also have a home as our first virtual exhibit. In Phase 2, we will be bringing on more exhibits, both as part of the permanent collection, but also more typical exhibits.”
As the NCGM project gains momentum, which includes artifact treatment and restoration, progress will be documented and posted to the museum’s Instagram and Facebook accounts. One of the oldest artifacts in the collection that is currently being prepared for conservation is the Fog Signal Cannon.
Unveiling the collection
“The Cannon is the oldest object in the Heritage Asset Collection, and it is a direct tie back to one of the oldest lighthouses in North America, the Boston Light,” said Gabe Christy, NCGM curator. “Boston Light was first built in 1716, and a fog cannon was installed on the island in 1719. The cannon we have in our collection is likely not the original from 1719, but still holds a significant place in terms of being a direct connection to this important piece of American maritime heritage.”
On Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023, at 12:30 p.m. EST the NCGM public affairs team will go Facebook Live, the first of many in a series documenting the Fog Signal Cannon’s path to restoration and eventual placement into the museum. The Facebook Live event will introduce viewers to the cannon and the team at B.R. Howard & Associates in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where a sizable portion of Coast Guard artifacts will be treated and restored in preparation for display in the NCGM.
You are invited to join the team for the Facebook Live event. The museum can be found on Facebook at National Coast Guard Museum | New London CT | Facebook and on Instagram at National Coast Guard Museum (@ncgmuseum) • Instagram photos and videos
The chat will be monitored during the event and your questions will be answered live by a member of the museum team.
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