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The Mississippi
River Museum: Discovery Center & Aquarium
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A model
of the Mississippi River Museum: Discovery Center and Aquarium.
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Construction
Photo Archive. - Completed!
Dubuque365.com is the
only place on the web or elsewhere
to follow construction of the Mississippi
River Museum. Our exclusive photo
galleries put you in the middle
of the progress. Watch with us at
this amazing education and entertainment
center rises from the group along
the shore of the Mississippi River.
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catalyst for the creation of the America's
River Project, the National Mississippi
River Museum & Aquarium blossomed
into a whole new world of hands-on learning
on June 28th, 2003. The William Woodward
Discovery Center and National Rivers Hall
of Fame brings together information and
resources about the Mississippi River
system through state-of-the-art technology
and exhibits the like of which has never
been attempted before. |
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Recent
Museum News
The
Museum is Open For Business!
The
future changes from here on in. With a swing of the champagne
bottle, The William Woodward River Discovery Center,
home of the National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium
opened to the public. Years of incredibly hard work,
steadfast dedication, and unprecedented teamwork has
paid off for the future of Dubuque. Project partners,
civic leaders, and governmental officials including Senator
Charles Grassley, Congressman Jim Nussle and Governor
Tom Vilsack spoke on similar themes, touching on both
the immense importance of the Mississippi River to the
lifeblood of our nation and showing awe at the ability
of Dubuque to show solidarity and unequaled leadership
in making this dream a reality. The museum also signed
the official affiliate agreement with the Smithsonian
Institution at the event and the most unlikely of donors,
a retired riverboat captain, donated one-million dollars
to create a library within the Museum. Click
for photos.
New
Aquarium Resident Arrives!
The
Discovery center welcomes the arrival of it's first fully
grown alligator from a zoo in Arizona. The striking creature
joins hundres of smaller animals from across the United
States in quarantine while the Center completes constructions.
To see images of the alligator and it's companion aquarium
buddies, click
here.
Discovery
Center joins with the Smithsonian!
The River
Discovery Center has joined the Smithsonian Institute Affiliations
Program. The announcement was made at the Taste of Dubuque on August
7th, 2002 by J. Michael Carrigan, the Affiliations program director.
The Smithsonian is the largest museum complex in the world. As an
affiliate, the Dubuque museum will have access to the Smithsonian's
vast collection. The Smithsonian also has internship, fellowship
and visiting professionals programs allowing the collaboration to
extend beyond just a swap of exhibits to a true sharing of all resources.
River Discovery
Center Gets a New Name.
A new name for the Mississippi River Discovery Center was unveiled
at Taste of Dubuque 2002. The center will be named the William Woodward
Discovery Center in memory of Bill Woodward, a former president
of the Dubuque County Historical Society who died in 1995, leaving
$1.76 million earmarked for seed money to begin the River Discovery
Center project. Woodward, along with Wayne Norman, who has also
since passed, are often cited as being major catalysts behind the
America's River dream. Woodward's sons and other family members
were on hand to commemorate the occasion.
Discovery
Center Also Gets a New Image.
Also unveiled was a new logo for the museum. A clever multi-image
circular icon that incorporates many aspects of the river as
we know it. Look at the logo to the right. Can you see a river
flowing from a distance. Can you see a heron facing left in
the same white space that makes up the river, In the blue sky
and green grass can you also see the images of two fish chasing
each other in a circle. This creative image will now identify
all marketing material of the Woodward Discovery Center. |
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An early
artist's rendering of the proposed museum campus. |
Five 30-foot
wide aquariums will take you beneath the surface of the Mississippi
River as you have never seen it before. Witness wildlife in
action within distinct river habitats. These include the main
channel of the Mississippi, a backwater marsh, and a flooded
woodland. In addition, an otter pond will be populated by
live otters, while alligators and snapping turtles take residence
in the delta bayou. Visitors will experience the river interactively
as they create a river of their own, examine the world of
hydrology, simulate famous historical floods, and experience
piloting a boat. Modern technology will connect the museum
to the Education and Conference Center as well as the world
outside.
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Visitors
will also be able to stroll through an outdoor wetland, visit
a Meskwaki story-teller lodge, and witness the launching of
a real boat into the water with a tremendous splash.
The William
M. Black, a paddle-wheeler listed on the Nation Registry of
Historic Places is also permanently docked at the Museum.
It will be restored and serve as a unique boat and breakfast
opportunity for visitors and school children. The William
M. Black was previously cut in half in order to fit into the
gates of the Port of Dubuque. Now reassembled, it will forever
be a resident of the harbor area.
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Click
the image above to see pictures of the first moving of the William
M. Black in over a decade! |
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The
museum is currently housed in the building port side at the
Diamond Jo Casino. |
Multimedia
exhibits will let you experience the river on film in a full
360 degree theater in the round. This center will bring it all
together in one place: the river, the animals, the people, the
history, the stories, the future. Representing life along the
full length of the Mississippi River, this museum will draw
on resources from every major national private and governmental
wildlife and nature organizations and serve as the main interpretive
center for the Upper Mississippi National Fish and Wildlife
Refuge. |
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Jerry Enzler,
Executive
Director,
Mississippi River Museum
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In
His Own Words - 365 mp3's
Listen
to Mississippi River Museum Executive Director
Jerry Enzler, a driving force behind the creation
of the America's River Project, describe the
museum in his own words in our three part Dubuque365
mp3 interview.
Hear not
only details about the many coming attractions within the
museum but also about its importance in documenting a significant
piece of our nation's living history. Mr. Enzler discusses
the design and designers of the Museum as well as the many
partner organizations involved in bringing the America's Dream
to fruition. Click the images below to download each corresponding
mp3. Click the Quicktime icon to download the media player
on your machine if you do not currently have player capable
of presenting audio in mp3 format.
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mp3
Part 1
What
is the Mississippi River Discovery Center?
(1.7 megs)
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mp3
Part 2
The
history and exhibits come to life under one roof! (2
megs)
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mp3
Part 3
The
technology, the partners, and the global significance! (1.5
megs)
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