Marie Tussaud (17611850) was born Marie Grosholtz in Strasbourg, France. Her mother worked as a housekeeper for Dr. Philippe Curtius, who was a physician skilled in wax modelling, and who taught her the art of wax modelling. She established her first permanent exhibition on Baker Street in London in 1835 (on the "Baker Street Bazaar").
The museum moved to its current location on Marylebone Road in 1884. In 1925 a fire destroyed many of the figures, but the moulds survived, allowing the historical waxworks to be remade.