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VICKERS/There is a Queen in Tunica
By OVID VICKERS
Most people know of the two steamboats that ply the waters of the mighty Mississippi between St. Louis and New Orleans. Both boats, the Delta Queen and the Mississippi Queen, can be seen from time to time tied up at Natchez or Vicksburg, affording tourists the opportunity to explore those two Mississippi cities.
At Tunica, just south of Memphis, a much smaller riverboat offers a pleasant trip on the river three times a day. The boat is docked at the Tunica Riverpark and departs at 1 and 3 p.m. each day. In addition, a two-hour cruise which included dinner and dancing is available each Friday and Saturday evening.
Those who elect to take a cruise on the Tunica Queen have the opportunity to see some interesting sights and hear the Queen's captain comment to what is being seen and also on the history of the river.
The four of us who were recently visiting the upper Delta found it interesting to learn that when Mississippi passed the legislation allowing casinos to operate along the Mississippi River, the bill stipulated that a casino must be located "on Mississippi River water."
Well, those who were interested in building casinos recognized a legal loophole. The legislation stipulated "Mississippi River water" not "the Mississippi River." Casino companies promptly set about having canals dredged from the river inland. When enough river had flowed through the canal to fill a dredged area large enough to hold a floating casino, the canal was refilled. The casino, therefore, was resting on Mississippi River water but not on the River.
It is interesting that the clusters of casinos are actually located at Robinsonville and not in the city of Tunica which is actually 17 miles away. It is also refreshing to know that casinos are not the only attractions offered to Tunica County visitors.
The recently-opened Tunica Riverpark and Museum is well worth a visit. The museum sits on the banks of the Mississippi and through displays, exhibits and multimedia presentations gives a history of the river from the days of the Indian moundbuilders to the present. In fact, the museum offers something for everyone. If you are interested in the Spanish explorers DeSoto and the conquistadors, they are there. If you are interested in steamboats, the blues, floods, river navigation, cotton plantations or simply dirt of the Delta, it is all there.
Part of the museum is devoted to an aquarium where the fish and turtles found in the river swim in four huge glass-fronted tanks. Just outside the museum is a two-mile nature walk through a wetlands forest. If you walk quietly, you might see deer, fox, squirrels, turtles, snakes and birds galore.
When you have completed touring the exhibits on the first and second floors, there is an observation deck on the third level which offers an impressive panoramic view of the river.
Seventeen miles south of the Tunica Riverpark is another museum operated by Tunica County and the City of Tunica. This museum is quite large and presents a history of Tunica County, the Delta, and its people. The tour of the museum is preceded by a short lecture given by a gentleman who talks with a live raccoon perched on his shoulder. While we were there, a tour bus of people from New Jersey were visiting, and they were obviously more interested in the antics of the raccoon than the lecturer's comments about the recent success of Tunica County.
The phenomenal growth of the county makes a stunning story. It seems that unemployment in the county went from 26 percent in the 1980s to less than 3 percent today. Annual wages have increased from $9,000 per year in 1980 to $27,000 per year in 2004. The county is now in the top 25 percent of per capita income in Mississippi.
This amazing growth has been brought about by the casinos which stand like the Emerald City of Oz right out in the middle of vast cotton fields. There is something surreal about these gambling palaces. Here they stand, all glitz and glitter, almost in the backyard of tenant houses where the laundry hangs on clothes lines and several dogs sleep on the front porch enjoying the last rays of sunlight before evening shadows fall and the casino lights begin to twinkle in the night sky.
We enjoyed our visit to Tunica County. We discovered that there is much more to do there than drop coins into casino slots. This is a section of Mississippi with a long interesting history. The town of Tunica is full of shops and restaurants with a green space filled with monuments and park benches. The green space is where the depot and railroad were in the glory days of railroads.
Tunica County is worth a visit. The county's recent prosperity is evident everywhere. There are sights to see, towns for shopping, and a boat for cruising Old Man River.
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