Museum of Coastal Carolina

Museum of Coastal Carolina Museum of Coastal Carolina A visit to the Museum of Coastal Carolina is a treat for the young and the young at heart. Happy, interactive voices are encouraged!

Many vacationers include it as a multi-generational activity for the whole family. Local residents know that it is one of Brunswick County’s best family activities. If you think museums are stuffy, quiet places that people visit for research, contemplation, or when there’s nothing else to do, then you haven’t visited North Carolina’s only natural history museum on a barrier island. Exterior murals

predict some of the things you’ll see inside the Museum of Coastal Carolina. One might hear toddlers calling out “Boat, Daddy, boat!” as they climb into the wooden strip boat made here in Brunswick County. Staff and volunteers often hear “Whoa!” when visitors approach the shark jaw exhibit. Carolina residents track their local rivers to the sea and parents teach their young children to keep the beach clean and protect the animals from trash as they pass the Litterbug Hall of Shame. Get up close to the area wildlife on display in the Green Swamp diorama. Then touch or hold a sea star, an urchin, hermit crab, or a horseshoe crab at the touch tank. Learn the inside story of shells at the updated Carolina Shells and Fossils exhibit. Don’t forget to bring your beach treasures to identify! Hear “oohs and aahs” as you take a walk through the Ocean Reef Gallery that depicts a reef habitat about 65 miles off the coast of North Carolina. The toddler area in the Barrier Island Gallery has puppets, toy ocean animals, puzzles, and lots of happy noise. Then there’s silent awe at the Legacy of the Loggerhead sea turtle exhibit’s short video filmed on Ocean Isle Beach about the life cycle of the loggerhead turtle that includes a mother turtle laying eggs and the hatchlings crawling to the sea. In the Coastal Plain, visitors exclaim “Wow!” when they see the American bald eagle up close and eye-to-eye. Identify the shorebirds you saw on Brunswick beaches. Children like to pretend they are a coyote or a bear with the pelts thrown over their shoulders. Fisherman are heard to exclaim that they learned to fish with a bamboo rod just like the one in the antique fishing equipment exhibit. The Museum of Coastal Carolina is located at 21 East Second Street, Ocean Isle Beach beside the playground and just a block from the beach and the pier. Enjoy coastal natural history . . . for the fun of it! Check http://museumplanetarium.org/ or call 910-579-1016 for further information. For educational and entertaining gifts and toys, visit Nature’s Treasures Gift Shop at the Museum or Galaxy Gifts at the Planetarium.

🐚 Do you know that seashells are getting harder to find due to increased tourism, commercial harvesting, and ocean acid...
08/26/2026

🐚 Do you know that seashells are getting harder to find due to increased tourism, commercial harvesting, and ocean acidification? That's right - acidification!
🐚 Do you know that seashells play an important role in healthy coastal ecosystems?
🐚 Do you know that our LAST Tidal Treasures program for the season is TOMORROW?

Don't miss it - join us!

OUR 2026 GOLF CART RAFFLE CONTINUES!🔵 We'll only sell 200 tickets, so DON'T DELAY and miss YOUR opportunity to own a go...
08/25/2026

OUR 2026 GOLF CART RAFFLE CONTINUES!

🔵 We'll only sell 200 tickets, so DON'T DELAY and miss YOUR opportunity to own a gorgeous NEW Bazen Golf Cars golf cart!
🔵 Visit our website, check our hours, and stop by the Museum to see the golf cart that COULD BE YOURS!

Did you know that live touch tanks like ours:🐠 provide a hands-on, multi-sensory way to interact with marine animals 🐠 ...
08/24/2026

Did you know that live touch tanks like ours:

🐠 provide a hands-on, multi-sensory way to interact with marine animals
🐠
🐠 promote ocean conservation AND
🐠 build a direct emotional connection to sea life?

Join us for Touch Tank Feeding EVERY Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 11 am!

❓ Who is "Crazy" Dale Varnam?❓ What did he have to do with the quaint fishing village of Varnamtown, North Carolina, b...
08/20/2026

❓ Who is "Crazy" Dale Varnam?
❓ What did he have to do with the quaint fishing village of Varnamtown, North Carolina, becoming the 2nd busiest port of entry for illegal drugs on the Eastern Seaboard?

📖 Enjoy this captivating tale directly from the author of "My Right Hand To Goodness: The Life and Times of Crazy Dale Varnam", published by Simon & Schuster, at our August 25 Sandbar Lecture!

The Sandbar Lecture Series brings local experts to speak about topics ranging from our coastal environment to Outer Banks history.

🍤 Tickets are on sale NOW for our popular 5th Annual Low Country Boil! Join us for a coastal celebration of the fall se...
08/19/2026

🍤 Tickets are on sale NOW for our popular 5th Annual Low Country Boil!

Join us for a coastal celebration of the fall season (we CANNOT promise autumn weather!)

Highlights:
🔵 Shrimply Delicious Catering’s Coastal Cuisine
🔵 Beer + Wine available for purchase
🔵 Live music with country artist Johnny White
🔵 Lawn games
🔵 Dine-in and To-go options

ALL tickets must be purchased in advance - NO tickets will be sold on the day of the event.

Don't delay - buy your tickets TODAY!

Sea Tales continues!Join us this week for Compost Stew: An A to Z Recipe for the Earth by Mary McKenna Siddals and learn...
08/18/2026

Sea Tales continues!

Join us this week for Compost Stew: An A to Z Recipe for the Earth by Mary McKenna Siddals and learn...

🪏 why composting is important
🪏 how to start a compost pile
🪏 What’s safe to include in a compost pile

We'll also make a compost stew craft - don't miss it!

🐚 Take your seashell hunting to the next level! 🐚Join nationally recognized seashell hunter and author Dr. Ashley Olip...
08/12/2026

🐚 Take your seashell hunting to the next level! 🐚

Join nationally recognized seashell hunter and author Dr. Ashley Oliphant to refine your beachcombing technique.

You'll learn how wind, moon, tide, currents, and seasons influence your seashell collection success.

PLUS, Dr. Oliphant will sign her NEW book, “The Ultimate Shell Seeker’s Guide: Building a Better Beachcombing Strategy.”

The Sandbar Lecture Series brings local experts to speak about topics ranging from our coastal environment to Outer Banks history.

Don't miss this special Sandbar Lecture TODAY at 5:30!If you:📚 ever dreamed of becoming a writer OR📚 love books OR📚 ...
08/11/2026

Don't miss this special Sandbar Lecture TODAY at 5:30!

If you:
📚 ever dreamed of becoming a writer OR
📚 love books OR
📚 love the Carolina coast,

You'll LOVE this opportunity to listen to SEVEN local authors share a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of "Carolina Tides," a short story collection inspired by the history, legend, and beauty of the Carolina coast!

Presenters include authors Jennifer E Tirrell (Writing Life with JET), Teri M Brown, Author, Lynda Stoy Stear, Jan Comfort, Karen W. Prescott, Lisa M. Pritchard and Carol Stigger.

Join seven local authors for an engaging behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Carolina Tides, a collaborative short story collection inspired by history, legend and the beauty of the Carolina […]

😎 🏖️ ALL are invited to a FREE End of Summer Kids Party! 🏖️😎Join the Town of Ocean Isle Beach Recreation Department ...
08/11/2026

😎 🏖️ ALL are invited to a FREE End of Summer Kids Party! 🏖️😎

Join the Town of Ocean Isle Beach Recreation Department and Museum for an "Under the Sea" bash at the OIB Town Center Park THIS Wednesday, August 12.

Ocean-themed fun will include:
🐠 Crafts
🐠 Games
🐠 Photo opps
🐠 Popsicles and more!
🐠 Vicki Paints • Face Painter will also be on hand FOR A FEE

📚 Are you a wanna-be writer?📚 Do you love books?📚 Do you love the Carolina coast?📚 Join 7 local authors for a beh...
08/07/2026

📚 Are you a wanna-be writer?
📚 Do you love books?
📚 Do you love the Carolina coast?
📚 Join 7 local authors for a behind-the-scenes look at the creation of "Carolina Tides," a short story collection inspired by the history, legend, and beauty of the Carolina coast!

Presenters include authors Jennifer E Tirrell (Writing Life with JET), Teri M Brown, Author, Lynda Stoy Stear, Jan Comfort, Karen W. Prescott, Lisa M. Pritchard and Carol Stigger.

Join seven local authors for an engaging behind-the-scenes look at the creation of Carolina Tides, a collaborative short story collection inspired by history, legend and the beauty of the Carolina […]

Address

21 E 2nd Street
Ocean Isle Beach, NC
28469

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 12pm - 4pm

Telephone

+19105791016

Website

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