The Civic Historic Museum was created due to the wishes of some private citizens who  wished to preserve and testimony the past of their city. In the first years of the 1900s, this resulted in a detailed collection of documents and historic material on the fortress of Palmanova was collected. It was only in 1961 that the Civic Museum of the city was officially instituted.

Exhibited at the Museum are some geographic maps which highlights the geo-political situation of Friuli during the sixteenth century and the territory in which the fortress of Palma  rose.

A series of reproductions and an original plan from the French period, of recent acquisition, illustrate the evolution of the three circles of fortification of the city and its urban plan.

From the Venetian period (1593 – 1797) are preserved manuscripts, drawings, and projects  which were inherent in the construction of the fortress, made by engineers and architects that operated at the Ufficio di Fortificazioni (Office of Fortifications) in Venice. A small but significant numismatic collection displays coins that were in circulation during the dominion of the Serenissima (Republic of Venice) and gold medals from the foundation of the city, with the image of the San Marco Lion and of the cross on the fortress of Palmanova, a symbol of defence and Christian faith.