The Museum of the Gulf Coast combines conventional and an unconventional approach to tell the exciting story of the Texas /Louisiana Gulf Coast region. Traditional themes are utilized in interpreting the focus of Gulf Coast life before the arrival of man, the role of Native Americans, European contact, Hispanic legacy, the trauma of Civil War, economic and cultural growth, and the integration of the Gulf coast region into the larger national and international community

The Museum of the Gulf Coast originated in 1944 as a special project by the Federated Women's Clubs, after a nationwide call to develop institutions that would highlight American culture. Having received its state charter in 1964, the local Historical Society at last found a fitting home in 1980 in a wing of the Gate's Memorial Library on the campus of Lamar University-Port Arthur. Here it operated until moving into its current location at 700 Proctor, where it opened on July 2, 1994. Since then, it has attracted patrons from 22 foreign countries and 47 states. Its mission is to collect, preserve, display, and interpret the history of the Gulf Coast region of southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana.