The National Maritime Museum, Cornwall is located in a harbourside building at Falmouth in Cornwall, England. The building was designed by architect M. J. Long,[1] following an architectural design competition managed by RIBA Competitions.
The museum grew out of the FIMI (Falmouth International Maritime Initiative) partnership which was created in 1992 and was the result of collaboration between the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich and the former Cornwall Maritime Museum in Falmouth. It opened in February 2003. It is an independent charitable trust[2] and, unlike other national museums, receives no direct government support.
Its mission is to promote an understanding of boats and their place in people's lives, and of the maritime heritage of Cornwall.[3] It does this by presenting the story of the sea, boats and the maritime history of Cornwall. It maintains the National Small Boats Register (NSBR).