The story of the Mississippi River region comes alive as you travel the Great River Road. Along the byway, you’ll find nearly 100 designated Great River Road Interpretive Centers and a number of scenic overlooks and locks and dams. If you’re interested in experiencing the Mississippi River, the Great River Road is the way to go.

Minnesota • Wisconsin • Iowa • Illinois • Missouri • Kentucky • Tennessee • Arkansas • Mississippi • Louisiana

Minnesota

Minnesota Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Itasca State Park-Jacob Brower Visitor Center – Park Rapids
• Itasca County Historical Society – Grand Rapids
• Forest History Center – Grand Rapids
• Charles A. Lindbergh Historic Site – Little Falls
• Oliver Kelley Farm, Minnesota Historical Society – Elk River
• Mill City Museum – Minneapolis
• Historic Fort Snelling – St. Paul
• Minnesota History Center – St. Paul
• The Science Museum of Minnesota – St. Paul
• NPS Mississippi River Visitor Center – St. Paul
• National Eagle Center – Wabasha
• Minnesota Marine Art Museum – Winona
• Winona County History Center – Winona

Locks & Dams on the Mississippi River in Minnesota

• Upper St. Anthony Falls – Minneapolis
• Lower St. Anthony Falls – Minneapolis
• Lock & Dam #1 – Minneapolis
• Lock & Dam #2 – Hastings
• Lock & Dam #3 – Red Wing
• Lock & Dam #5 – Winona
• Lock & Dam #7 – LaCrescent

Scenic Overlooks in Minnesota

• Great River Bluffs State Park – Winona
• Garvin Heights City Park – Winona
• John A. Latsch State Park – Minneiska
• Summit Avenue – St. Paul
• Barn Bluff – Red Wing

See Minnesota Great River Road map.

Wisconsin

Wisconsin Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Great River Road Visitor & Learning Center – Prescott
• Genoa National Fish Hatchery – Genoa
• Villa Louis – Prairie du Chien
• Fort Crawford Museum – Prairie du Chien
• Stonefield State Historic Site – Cassville
• Potosi Brewing Company – Potosi

Locks & Dams on the Mississippi River

• Lock & Dam #4 – Alma
• Lock & Dam #5a – Fountain City
• Lock & Dam #6 – Trempealeau
• Lock & Dam #8 – Genoa

Scenic Overlooks in Wisconsin

• Nelson Dewey State Park – Cassville
• Wyalusing State Park – Bagley
• Larson Bluff – Lynxville
• Grandad Bluff – La Crosse
• Perrot State Park – Trempealeau
• Buena Vista Park – Alma
• Freedom Park – Prescott

See Wisconsin Great River Road map.

Iowa

Iowa Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Driftless Area Education & Visitor Center – Lansing
• Effigy Mounds National Monument – Harpers Ferry
• Environmental Learning Center – Muscatine
• Motor Mill Historic Site – Elkader
• Iowa DNR – Guttenberg Fish Hatchery – Guttenberg
• National Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium & National Rivers Hall of Fame – Dubuque
• E.B. Lyons Interpretive Center/Mines of Spain Recreation Area – Dubuque
• Hurstville Interpretive Center – Maquoketa
• The Sawmill Museum – Clinton
• Mississippi River Eco Tourism Center – Camanche
• Buffalo Bill Museum & River Pilots Pier – LeClaire
• Putnam Museum of History & Natural Science – Davenport
• Nahant Marsh Education Center – Davenport
• Pine Creek Grist Mill – Muscatine
• Muscatine History & Industry Center – Muscatine
• Toolesboro Mounds & Museum – Wapello
• Heritage Center Museum – Burlington
• Old Fort Madison – Ft. Madison
• George M. Verity Riverboat Museum – Keokuk

Locks and Dams on the Mississippi River in Iowa

• Lock & Dam #9 – Harpers Ferry
• Lock & Dam #10 – Guttenberg
• Lock & Dam #11 – Dubuque
• Lock & Dam #12 – Bellevue
• Lock & Dam #13 – Clinton
• Lock & Dam #14 – LeClaire
• Lock & Dam #16 – Muscatine
• Lock & Dam #19 – Keokuk

Scenic Overlooks in Iowa

• Pike’s Peak State Park – McGregor

See Iowa Great River Road map.

Illinois

Illinois Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Mississippi River Visitor Center Lock and Dam 15 – Rock Island
• Black Hawk State Historic Site – Rock Island
• Villa Kathrine/Friends of the Castle – Quincy
• Pere Marquette State Park – Grafton
• National Great Rivers Museum – Alton
• Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site – Collinsville
• Fort de Chartres State Historic Site – Prairie du Rocher
• Pierre Menard State Historic Site & Fort Kaskaskia – Ellis Grove
• Cairo Custom House Museum – Cairo

Locks and Dams on the Mississippi River in Illinois

• Lock & Dam #13 – Fulton
• Lock & Dam #15 – Rock Island
• Lock & Dam #17 – New Boston
• Lock & Dam #18 – Gladstone
• Lock & Dam #21 – Quincy
• Lock & Dam #26 – East Alton
• Lock & Dam #27 – Granite City

Scenic Overlooks in Illinois

• Old Chain of Rocks Bridge – Madison
• Sunset Park – Rock Island
• Mississippi Rapids Welcome Center – Rock Island

See Illinois Great River Road map.

Missouri

Missouri Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Mark Twain Boyhood Home & Museum – Hannibal
• City of Clarksville Visitor Center – Clarksville
• Howard & Joyce Wood Education & Visitor Center at Columbia Bottom Conservation Area – St. Louis
• Gateway Arch National Park – St. Louis
• Ste. Genevieve Welcome Center – Sainte Genevieve
• Trail of Tears State Park – Jackson
• Cape Girardeau Conservation Campus Nature Center – Cape Girardeau
• Sikeston Depot Museum – Sikeston
• New Madrid Historical Museum – New Madrid

Locks and Dams on the Mississippi River in Missouri

• Lock & Dam #20 – Canton
• Lock & Dam #22 – Saverton
• Lock & Dam #23 – Between Saverton and Clarksville
• Lock & Dam #24 – Clarksville
• Lock & Dam #25 – Winfield

Scenic Overlooks in Missouri

• Old Mississippi River Bridge Scenic Overlook – Cape Girardeau
• Trail of Tears State Park – Jackson

See Missouri Great River Road map.

Kentucky

Kentucky Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Wickliffe Mounds State Historic Site – Wickliffe
• Columbus-Belmont State Park – Columbus

See Kentucky Great River Road map.

Tennessee

Tennessee Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Reelfoot Lake State Park – Tiptonville
• Discovery Park of America – Union City
• C.H. Nash Museum at Chucalissa/T.O. Fuller State Park – Memphis

See Tennessee Great River Road map.

Arkansas

Arkansas Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Delta Gateway Museum – Blytheville
• Mississippi County Historical & Genealogical Society Museum – Osceola
• Historic Dyess Colony | Johnny Cash Boyhood Home – Dyess
• Hampson Archeological Museum State Park – Wilson
• Parkin Archeological State Park –  Parkin
• Sultana Disaster Museum – Marion
• Mississippi River State Park – Marianna
• Museum of the Arkansas Grand Prairie – Stuttgart
• Helena Museum of Phillips County – Helena
• Delta Cultural Center – Helena
• Dale Bumpers White River National Wildlife Refuge – St. Charles
• Arkansas Post National Memorial – Gillett
• World War II Japanese American Internment Museum – McGehee
• Lake Chicot State Park – Lake Village
• Lakeport Plantation – Lake Village

See Arkansas Great River Road map.

Mississippi

Mississippi Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Tunica RiverPark Museum – Tunica
• Delta Blues Museum – Clarksdale
• Washington County Welcome Center & Museum of the Delta/River Road Queen Welcome Center – Greenville
• Lower Mississippi River Museum – Vicksburg
• Vicksburg National Military Park – Vicksburg
• Grand Gulf Military Monument Commission, aka Grand Gulf Park – Port Gibson
• Natchez Convention and Visitor Bureau – Natchez
• Mississippi Welcome Center/Woodville Hospitality Station – Woodville

See Mississippi Great River Road map.

Louisiana

Louisiana Great River Road Interpretive Centers:

• Poverty Point World Heritage Site – Pioneer
• Port Hudson State Historic Site – Jackson
• West Feliciana Historical Society Museum – St. Francisville
• LSU Rural Life Museum & Windrush Gardens – Baton Rouge
• Plaquemine Lock State Historic Site – Plaquemine
• The Louisiana Great River Road Interpretive Center and Museum – Darrow
• The Historic New Orleans Collection – New Orleans
• Louisiana State Museum – New Orleans
• Jean Lafitte National Historical Park & Preserve – New Orleans

See Louisiana Great River Road map.