national civil war naval museum

Not many people in the museum when we got there so we were able to spend lots of time reading and looking at everything.

Good museum interesting in that it has items that we don't get to see since we are so far from the coast.

I never knew Columbus GA on the Chattahoochee river was the CSA Naval Shipyard. This is a super interesting civil war naval museum containing artifacts and history from both sides. Very engaging. We even got to see them fire an 11" Dahlgren cannon out on the river. Well worth a visit if you are a history buff.

My husband and I travel a lot in our retirement. We like to seek new places to visit as we travel some of our frequent road trip areas, in this case the Florida Panhandle to our home in western Pennsylvania. Using TripAdvisor and AAA Guidebooks, I then suggest places we haven't explored before. This is a wonderful and unexpected treasure for anyone interested in Civil War or Naval history. Beautifully organized and well developed, it should be seen by old and young to expand knowledge of the the Civil War Era. We will stop here again when in Columbus, GA.

Nice museum with great artefacts and displays about civil war - exceptional displays - Really glad we visited

This museum really has the ‘wow’ factor. There are lots and lots of artifacts here including the biggest flags I’ve ever seen. What stunned me were the remains of the ironclad CSS Jackson which are absolutely huge and in a massive hangar by themselves. It’s a really dramatic sight, even though only some of the wooden hull remains, but you get a real feeling for how big those vessels really were. There are also modern mock-ups of the Hartford and Albermarle which you can walk through. On the upside there are good facilities and good parking but I didn’t see any staff or docents on the floor so there was no opportunity of asking questions, plus there are no café facilities. However the whole building is very accessible for wheelchair users and buggies. The replica of the White Witch outside was closed for maintenance, but it was Christmas so that’s fair enough. Check out the wonderful wall paintings which are fantastic and give a real idea of the many and varied vessels that were in use during the Civil War. This is a must-see for history fans.

We really enjoyed this facility. It is tucked away on a bluff overlooking the river. The exhibits were first rate. I really enjoyed seeing the variety of flags that actually flew above civil war ships. The facility was clean, nice bathrooms and a well stocked book shop with great titles. For any civil war nut like me this is a must. I learned quite a bit.I did not care much for the city but do not let that deter a visit.

If you like American history this is a must stop! This museum documents so much Civil War naval history that is not taught in schools.

Displays were well arranged and the staff was very helpful in answering our questions. We will certainly return.

If you are a history buff like me, this is well worth the visit. ?not a lot is written or talked about civil war era naval except for the ironclads, so this filled in a lot of gaps.

I am a novice Civil War history buff and was impressed with the level of involvement of the CSA Navy during the Civil War. There is so much information regarding land movements with the infantry, cavalry and artillery that it is easy to forget that there was a large coast and many miles of rivers that needed to be defended. There is a hull from one of the ironclads on display. I had no idea how big those things were. The remaining hull on display will give you a good sense of how large some of them were. I really enjoyed seeing the relics that were salvaged.

The displays were well done. We learned there were so many more wartime vessels other than the Monitor and Merrimack.

This is a nice museum. The exhibits are very well done. It was larger than we expected. Lots of interesting information.

We drove to Columbus from Washington DC to see this museum, and just loved it. We saw mention of it while visiting the Natural History Museum in San Diego back in February, but couldn't get here before now (11/2014). It was well worth the trip. Great staff, stunning collection of artifacts, rare cannon, models and dioramas. We came back the next day to browse the gift shop and book selection. We came for this museum, but stayed for the Infantry Museum which we also enjoyed thoroughly.

You can really spend alot of time in this museum. We attended with our family of six that included children aged from 7 to 19. I highly recommend this for anyone visiting the area. The exhibits are lifelike and take you through a wonderful journey of history and our soldiers.