The museum was established in 1908 and opened at its current location in 1922, although its parent organization was founded in 1839.

[4] The museum was built on the site of the former Bastion Henricus, a part of the baroque fortification which was erected between 1616 and 1625 by the Dutchman Jan van Valckenborgh in order to make the town impregnable.

The area was part of the old city wall defences built by the Dutchman Jan van Valckenborgh.

[7] At that time, it was common for pirates to be executed by being beheaded, and then the skull would be put on an iron stake to display the consequences of this activity.

[citation needed] In 2016, the museum was considered as a candidate for repatriation of a century old German dog-tag.

Here the exhibits around 2005: The museum has many artifacts preserved by the Society of Hamburg History founded in 1839.

[13] Die lange Nacht der Museen is a spring evening when museums like HM stay open past midnight, and has been held annually since the year 2000.