The Changing River

“The Changing River” exhibit aims to inspire awareness of the Missouri River’s past, present and future and the technology and interests that try to control it. The 27-panel exhibit takes visitors from the “wild river” to the 2011 flood with dozens of stories and images in between. It illuminates the role of the river in the lives of Native peoples who were here long before Lewis and Clark and European-American settlers. It moves through the exploration and steamboat years, the coming of the railroads, subsequent efforts to create a navigational channel, and federal legislation to construct additional dams. The exhibit offers insight into the river’s role in agriculture, ecology and industry, including the Sioux City Stockyards.