The Missouri Mom: M/V Mississippi Docked in Downtown Cape Girardeau, MO

Today the M/V Mississippi was docked in Downtown Cape Girardeau and invited visitors to get a behind the scene look at what the largest diesel towboat and Flagship to the Mississippi River Commission. Knowing that my little man is a bit of a boat fanatic, we headed downtown to the riverfront to get our chance to be aboard this mighty ship.

The M/V Mississippi is 241 feet long, 58 feet wide, and five stories high. Three 2100-hp diesel engine powers this might ship, and the vessel’s primary mission is to move barges in support of bank stabilization work in the lower Mississippi River. The vessel was built in 1993, has 22 staterooms, a dining room that seats 85, a conference room that seats 115 people, and can accommodate 150 passengers.

The Crews Stateroom

Learning how they change the River's flow.

However, today the boat and the boat’s crew along with many volunteers and staff of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers took time to give us and many other visitors a look at the vessel. The M/V Mississippi was docked on the Riverfront in Cape Girardeau from 10 am to noon today inside the ship you could see what it was like to live and work on the towboat and learn what how the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manages the flow of the river.

The M/V Mississippi will also be docked in Alton Illinois at the Melvin Price Locks & Dam on Sunday, August 12, 2012 from noon to 4 p.m. For more information about this, or any of the National Great Rivers Museum’s programs, call 1-877-462-6979 or visit their website. The National Great Rivers Museum is located in Alton, IL adjacent to the Melvin Price Locks and Dam off of IL-143, two miles south of the Clark Bridge.

On August 18, 2012 from 9 am to noon the vessel will again be docked and welcoming visitors on the Riverfront in Chester Illinois.

Have an Adventurous Day!

~Becky