The St. Clement’s Island Museum isn’t being renovated — it’s being completely rebuilt. “It’s a complete demolition and rebuild,” Museum Division Manager Karen Stone told the public during a July 29 presentation at Potomac Gardens, where she and the county’s Department of Public Works unveiled architectural renderings, floor plans and exhibit concepts for the new two-story facility now under construction in Coltons Point.
The new building, which broke ground in 2025 under a $4.4 million contract with W.M. Davis Inc., is expected to run more than 10,000 square feet and include a new children’s area, a multipurpose room, and exhibits presenting both the Piscataway and English perspectives on Maryland’s founding. Construction is now scheduled to finish Jan. 22, 2027, with exhibit installation expected to take another one to two months — putting the museum on track to reopen the week of Maryland Day in March 2027, as county officials have targeted since the project began.
“The stories interweave and intertwine, and will be told from both perspectives,” Stone said. “We’re working with the tribal council, and they have been involved in every step of the way since the very beginning.”
Much of the museum’s existing collection will return, but Stone said it will be displayed differently, aiming to give visitors a fuller picture of the island’s history. A 2,598-square-foot gallery will feature artifacts from the Smithsonian alongside items from the Piscataway people. Children and families will also have access to a new “please touch” room, where tactile materials — animal pelts, woven fabrics, arrowheads, spearheads and more — let visitors engage with the history through touch rather than just sight, Stone said. A new orientation theater will show films and, during the off-season, host tours related to the Blackistone Lighthouse.
The rebuilt museum sits on the same site as the old one, with 1,300 additional square feet of decking added to the property, according to St. Mary’s County Recreation and Parks.
While construction continues, some museum programming has kept running independently. The water taxi to St. Clement’s Island operates daily from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., weather permitting, at $7 per person, and the museum still offers guided tours for student, bus and other groups by pre-arrangement with the site manager. Art Kids, the museum’s children’s art program — $7 per child, with supplies provided, and a different project theme each session — is set to return for the summer of 2027 once the new building opens.