Welcome to the Murney Tower Museum!
A UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE
Operated by the Kingston Historical Society since 1925.
About Us
The Murney Tower Museum is a local history museum operated by the Kingston Historical Society in partnership with Parks Canada since 1925. It is located in one of the four Martello Towers of Kingston, Ontario and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Rideau Canal and Kingston Fortifications. It is the oldest operating museum in Kingston, which has a collection of domestic and military artifacts that portray 19th-century life in Kingston. It also offers guided tours, audio tours, educational programs, special events, and exhibits.
Announcements
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CLOSED for the Season
Murney Tower Museum is now CLOSED for the 2026 summer season. Thank you for joining us for our 101st operating season!
Keep an eye out for updates on special events and other information!
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Murney Tower Museum Presents New Haiku Exhibition in Partnership with Haiku Canada
Murney Tower Museum is proud to present a new poetry exhibition developed in partnership with Haiku Canada.
This first-of-its-kind exhibition features 42 English- and French-language haiku by members of Haiku Canada, a national society dedicated to promoting the creation and appreciation of haiku and related poetic forms. Rooted in moments of perception and lived experience, the exhibition reflects the spirit of haiku as an art form that captures fleeting yet meaningful impressions.
Inspired by Murney Tower itself, the selected works respond to the site’s architecture, atmosphere, surrounding landscape, and layered histories. Together, the poems offer quiet reflections on place, memory, nature, and connection across time.
Visitors are also invited to take part in an interactive station where they can compose and submit their own haiku, creating new reflections inspired by the tower and its surroundings.
Visitor Information
Murney Tower Museum is OPEN every day from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM.
We acknowledge that Murney Tower Museum is situated on the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee and Anishinaabe. We recognize that this is shared land through the Dish with One Spoon Wampum Covenant with Anishinaabe, Huron-Wendat, and Haudenosaunee nations hundreds of years ago. We are grateful to continue to share this land to teach, learn, celebrate, and live.
Murney Tower Museum acknowledges with thanks the continued financial support of the City of Kingston, Tourism Kingston, and the Kingston and Area Association of Museums, Art Galleries and Historic Sites.
