The Museum includes a reception area, temporary and permanent exhibition halls, theater, classroom/activity room, office and work room. The museum educates the public about life on the Lower Mississippi River and its tributaries, from St. Louis to the Gulf of Mexico. It provides an understanding of the third largest river in the world and its role as a thoroughfare for waterborne commerce, a complex environmental system and a valuable resource for economic development. The Museum and interpretive site review the river valley’s cultural and natural history. The site features the Motor Vessel Mississippi, a retired working vessel of the Corps of Engineers.
The building is designed to meet the architectural requirements of the downtown historic district. The street façade on Washington Street is brick masonry with punched openings. A masonry tower announces the building entry. Glass curtain wall façades face the Mississippi River and the Motor Vessel Mississippi. Angled storefront glass panels and decorative walls remind visitors of the movement of the Mississippi River over time.