The original front door to Kimmswick has reopened.
The American Duchess riverboat, with 135 passengers and 83 crew members on board, pulled into Kimmswick’s new port on the Mississippi River early Sunday morning, and a few hours later the passengers disembarked for a day of fun in the city and surrounding area, Mayor Phil Stang said.
“This is the new start of the new history for Kimmswick,” Stang said. “The facing front of the city used to be the river before Hwy. 61-67 came along and became the front door.”
The riverboat was supposed to arrive in Kimmswick between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m., but it arrived at 3:15 a.m. after skipping a stop in Cape Girardeau, said American Queen Steamboat Co. spokesperson Kelsey Matthews.
The American Duchess is one of four vessels operated by the company, which is based in New Albany, Ind.
Neal Breitweiser, executive director of the Jefferson County Port Authority, which operates the dock, said it was “very gratifying” to see the riverboat stop in Kimmswick.
“It was nice to see it all come together,” he said.
When the passengers got off the boat at about 8 a.m., a musical quartet was on hand to serenade them. Several local dignitaries spoke, including Stang, Jefferson County Executive Dennis Gannon, Jefferson County Port Authority board president Derrick Good and Colin Wellenkamp, executive director of the Mississippi River Cities and Towns Initiative.
Stang presented the boat’s captain with a proclamation declaring July 11, 2021, American Duchess Day in Kimmswick, and Rep. Dan Shaul presented resolutions from the Missouri House of Representatives to Kimmswick, the Jefferson County Port Authority and the American Duchess.
After the presentation, the Windsor High School band performed, and buses started taking passengers to various attractions, including the Anheuser Museum and Estate and the Burgess-How House in Kimmswick and the Mastodon State Historic site in Imperial. A bus also took passengers to the LaChance Vineyards in De Soto, Kimmswick Historical Society president Diane Nagy said.
“It was just fantastic,” Nagy said. “The passengers were stunned by the greeting they received at the dock.”
Nearly 1,000 visitors stopped by the dock throughout the day to see the American Duchess, which left Kimmswick at 5:05 p.m., Breitweiser said.
He said the Port Authority is working with the American Queen Steamboat Co. to get two more vessels to dock in Kimmswick, including the American Countess, which may make a stop in the town in August, as well as another of the company’s vessels, which may stop there in September.
“Kimmswick’s excitement for the American Queen Steamboat Company’s arrival in the port was evident in the welcoming celebration they showed the American Duchess’ passengers and crew,” Matthews said. “American Queen Steamboat Co. looks forward to adding stops in Kimmswick.”