The city museum was opened on 30 November in 1924. In 1935, the museum moved from its original home on Jānis Čakste Square to its current location in a respectable building at Nr. 16 Kūrmājas Prospekts, erected in the years 1900-1901. The house was built by architect Paul Max Bertschi after a sketch of a Berliner architect Ernst von Ine.

The exhibits in the museum’s halls tell a story about the past of Liepāja and South Kurzeme: ancient history represented by unique archaeological artefacts; the history of the city in mediaeval times; items reminiscent of the 19th-20th century; South Kurzeme ethnography featured through a man’s life course; life and art of wood sculptor Miķelis Pankoks. The museum has one of the largest exhibition halls in Liepāja and hosts new art exhibitions on a regular basis.