ALTON – The Missouri History Museum’s Mighty Mississippi exhibit will get a second life at the National Great Rivers Museum in a collaboration that brings awareness to local endangered species research.
The Mighty Mississippi was a comprehensive, immersive exhibit that was on display at the Missouri History Museum from November 2019 through June 2021. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic coinciding with this timeframe resulted in fewer people being able to enjoy this exhibit than otherwise would have. With a new exhibit already scheduled to take its place, the Missouri History Museum looked for a way to extend the life of the Mighty Mississippi and allow more members of the community to engage with its many pieces that span topics such as flooding and droughts, navigation and commerce, steamboat history, and native civilizations. The search for a new home resulted in a partnership with the National Great Rivers Museum, a facility operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) located in Alton Illinois next to the Melvin Price Locks and Dam.
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David Lobbig, Curator of Environmental Life for the Missouri History Museum, said “Sitting near the confluence of the nation’s two greatest rivers, the National Great Rivers Museum is the place to experience how community is defined by our river system. With key elements of Mighty Mississippi now there, visitors continue seeing how so many organizations, agencies, and individuals work to keep river habitat and biology healthy and diverse. We’re extremely happy to work with our partners to celebrate our shared river heritage and see the exhibit live on.”
“We are honored to be able to give a second life to the Mighty Mississippi exhibit here at the National Great Rivers Museum,” said Allison Rhanor, Natural Resources Specialist for the USACE and Director of the National Great Rivers Museum. “Our museum takes a holistic approach in the way we engage visitors with different aspects of large rivers, making our location the perfect fit for the Mighty Mississippi. We plan to use different elements from the Missouri History Museum’s expansive exhibit to create smaller exhibits that focus on specific river-related topics that can be cycled in and out for years to come.”
The first of these rotating, temporary exhibits will focus on the ecological health and diversity of river species and will be on display in conjunction with exhibit pieces that showcase critical endangered species research the USACE is currently working on together with the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC). This work is focused on lake sturgeon, a large, ancient species of fish that is endangered in both Missouri and Illinois. The only known occurrence of this fish spawning in either state occurred right outside the walls of the National Great Rivers Museum near the locks and dam, and researchers want to know why, and how they can make it happen again.
The dual exhibit will be unveiled on August 14th and with that unveiling will come a multitude of fishy festivities for the entire family to enjoy. The Illinois Natural History Survey’s Great Rivers Field Station will be at the museum with their large portable tank, full of big river fish straight from the Mississippi River. Visitors will be able to get an up-close look at these “Mississippi Monsters” and interact with fisheries biologists that work on this stretch of the river. MDC’s Lake Sturgeon Coordinator Travis Moore will also be giving presentations in the museum’s theater throughout the day.
“Lake sturgeon are Missouri’s second largest fish, and we believe they are the state’s oldest living animal. It is surprising that they can reach over 200 pounds, a length of eight feet, and live over 125 years, eating only insects, crayfish, and small fish,” said Moore. “As a fisheries biologist who tries to manage this species, I have to keep in mind that my 31-year career covers only a small part of a lake sturgeon’s lifespan. We may not know how the management actions we take today will impact the population for another 25 or 30 years.”
In addition to live fish and presentations throughout the day, kids will be able to make their own “Save Our Sturgeon” buttons and help to fill in a portion of the exhibit’s wall with their pledges to make choices that benefit endangered species. An entire third of the exhibit wall is a life-sized sturgeon, waiting to be filled in with these pledges from local youth. “The day is really about community and partnership in addition to endangered species awareness,” said Rhanor. “We are very fortunate to have so many organizations working with us to provide this experience to our visitors.”
Free, public tours of Melvin Price Locks and Dam will also be offered on the hour between 10am – 3pm. To read more about the unveiling of the Missouri History Museum’s Mighty Mississippi exhibit at the National Great Rivers Museum, check out the Facebook event on either museum’s page at https://fb.me/e/TtpwEiD6. To read more about the fishy festivities happening on August 14th, including Moore’s presentation topics and times, click here: https://fb.me/e/1lJxVMmOU.
The National Great Rivers Museum is located at 2 Locks and Dam Way in Alton Illinois and is open to the public from 9am – 5pm seven days a week and is free of charge.
For more information, please contact Allison Rhanor at 618-541-9338.
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