Whale Center of New England Visitor Center

Map of 24 Harbor Loop
Gloucester, MA 01930-5004

The exhibit is based around the skeleton of Inland, a 28 foot (8.5 meter) young female humpback whale. Inland was first sighted during the fall of 2000, when she spent months living far inside harbors along Boston's North Shore. Hundreds of people daily braved the cold to watch her lunge feeding off of Pickering Wharf in Salem, or next to the famous "fisherman at the wheel" statue in Gloucester. Sadly, Inland died after becoming entangled in a gill net in April, 2001, off of Virginia Beach, VA. With support from the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and the Virginia Marine Science Museum, Whale Center staff retrieved the skeleton. Working in conjunction with Dan Dendanto of Allied Whale, a program of the College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, ME, the skeleton has been repaired and mounted for our exhibit.

While Inland's skeleton is the focus of the exhibit, there is far more to the facility than it alone. Whale Center staff, who are experts in the marine mammal field, have written a series of educational panels that deal with a wide variety of subjects. Visitors can learn about the abundance, behavior, and biology of marine mammals in local waters, as well as world-wide efforts to research and conserve these animals. Common questions like "Why do whales breach?" or "Why do whales and dolphins become stranded?" are answered. Special artifacts like a 9-foot long bowhead whale baleen plate, old whaling tools, and radio tags, and hundreds of photos and illustrations displayed throughout the exhibit.

In addition to the display, the visitor center also includes a gallery of marine mammal related art and literature and a gift shop. Here you can both view and purchase some of the finest photographs, painting, and sculpture of these special animals. Whale Center staff has also chosen a special selection of the best books on marine mammals for all ages. We have chosen those books that are accurate, informative, fun to read, and often written by colleagues that are leaders in the field. All of the proceeds raised by gallery sales will help our programs to study and conserve whales, dolphins, seals, and other marine mammals.

The Visitor Center is free, although donations are appreciated. We hope that you will come and see this exciting facility for yourself. If you live nearby, and would like to become more involved, we will even be accepting volunteers to help us staff the exhibit; feel free to get in touch with us at your convenience. We'll see you here!