The Casino Queen squeezes through the Bayou Chico drawbridge, circa 1993.

Check out the Photos in today's PNJ. I am on the bottom deck, brownish shirt, by the stairs. Going thought the drawbridge was a rush. Made the bridge ok but got stuck on the sandbar by the Yacht club. Boat was too long for the turn. We made it later on in the day with the help of a couple of tugs.

The Dubuque Casino Belle at the Patti Shipyard, circa 1991.

*****SMILE*****

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1OFuyCsJBk

I love riverboats. Would like to have explored that one. The only one I've ever been on is one docked at Baton Rouge and it was cool as snot.

I guess it got sold in 2008. I would like to know if it is still on the river. Damn thing sure made a lot of money, almost as much as Stooderville will make us. 700 million in just taxes in 15 years. I heard it paid for its self in just 2 years.


The Branson-based company which owns the Titanic Museum on Highway 76 has purchased the Casino Queen riverboat.

The Casino Queen has spent the last 15 years along the Mississippi as an icon of East St. Louis, but it will be floated to a new home. John Joslyn, president and CEO of Branson-based Cedar Bay Entertainment tells the St. Louis Business Journal that his company specializes in family entertainment. The amount the Casino Queen sold for has not been disclosed. The Casino Queen left it's berth across the river from the Gateway Arch and was taken to Mike's Dock in Harford - Illinois where it will be docked for winter before undergoing renovations. During it's lifetime, the Casino Queen generated some 700-million dollars in state and local tax revenues. In 2007 the Casino Queen moved it's operations to a 92-million dollar complex on-land. As for the future of the 19th-century, four-story side-wheeler , Joslyn would not say. By the way, Cedar Bay has groundbreaking ceremonies scheduled November 13th for another Titanic Museum in Tennessee.