The Lowestoft Maritime Museum charts the town's long history as a major fishing port and shipbuilding centre. For most of the 19th and early 20th centuries, Lowestoft had one of the largest fishing fleets on the English east coast, and the museum's collections reflect that — boat models, fishing equipment, charts, photographs, and the stories of the men who worked the North Sea herring grounds.
The museum occupies a Victorian lifeboat house on Whapload Road, near the harbour. The exhibits cover herring drifting, trawling, the Lowestoft porcelain industry, and the town's wartime history. It is volunteer-run and small, but the depth of local knowledge on display makes it one of the more satisfying local museums in the region.