''Sergeant Floyd'' is a historic
museum boat, serving as the Sergeant Floyd River Museum & Welcome Center at 1000 Larsen Park Road in
Sioux City, Iowa. Built in 1932 as a utility vehicle and
towboat, she is one of a small number of surviving vessels built specifically for the
United States Army Corps of Engineers in its management of the nation's inland waterways. The boat has been restored and
drydocked, and now houses exhibits about the
Missouri River and local tourism information. The museum is a facility of the
Sioux City Public Museum.
She was declared a
National Historic Landmark in 1989.
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Description and history
''Sergeant Floyd'' is located in a drydock in Larsen Park, on the waterfront of the
Missouri River just north of the Sioux City Marina. She is a steel-hulled craft with a superstructure of wood and steel. She has a total length of , a beam of , and a hold depth of . When fully loaded, she had a draft of . Her hull has a sharp prow, and has both longitudinal and transverse bulkheads. She has a hogging frame, which provides additional reinforcement in the event of running aground. The superstructure has three levels, providing crew quarters and the operating spaces of the vessel. In 1937 she underwent alterations to address vibrations in her hull, and in 1962-63 her engines were upgraded.
She was built in 1932 at the Howardville Shipyard in
Jeffersonville, Indiana
Jeffersonville is a city and the county seat of Clark County, Indiana, Clark County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It lies directly across the Ohio River ...
, and was delivered to the
United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Kansas City District. Her early service was as a support vehicle, moving men, equipment, and supplies throughout the district, and conducting inspection voyages. She remained in active service until 1975, when Congress authorized her to be remodeled for use as a USACE museum ship. She served in this role first as a traveling exhibit, and then berthed at
St. Louis, Missouri until 1982, when she was given to the city of
Sioux City, Iowa.
See also
*
''Baltimore'' (tug), a similar vessel for the
city of Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
, also a National Historic Landmark
*
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Iowa
*
National Register of Historic Places listings in Woodbury County, Iowa
References
External links
Sergeant Floyd River Museum and Welcome Center- Sioux City Public Museum
{{NRHP in Woodbury County, Iowa
National Historic Landmarks in Iowa
Towboats
Museums in Woodbury County, Iowa
National Register of Historic Places in Sioux City, Iowa
Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Iowa
Museum ships in Iowa
History museums in Iowa
1932 ships
United States Army Corps of Engineers
Tourist attractions in Sioux City, Iowa