Funded by the US Army Corps of Engineers, the museum includes a reception area, temporary and permanent exhibition halls, theater, classroom/activity room, office and work rooms. The museum’s purpose is to educate the public about the Lower Mississippi River and its tributaries, from St. Louis to the Gulf of Mexico. The site features the Motor Vessel Mississippi, a retired Corps of Engineers working towboat. The building is designed to relate to the historic nature of downtown Vicksburg through the use of brick and the scale of the openings.