ohio river museum

Small and kind of disorganized. The Riverboat restoration project was nice. Grounds are well kept. Good attraction on the river.

There are some interesting artifacts to look at, but we mostly hoped to take the tour of the WP Snyder (river boat). Although it has come back from the repairs that took it away almost a year ago (which is why we put off our tour of the museum), we got there only to find that they had sent it somewhere else for the weekend. Hopefully it will be back the next time that we are there:)

Built on stilts to keep them out of harms way should the Ohio River flood their location, the Ohio River Museum consists of three small buildings that tell the story of steam boats on the river. Poles near the museum show the elevation that the river has made during past floods.I enjoyed the orientation film which includes actual footage of vintage steam wheelers on the river. Of particular interest to me were the calliope and the ship whistles on display. A tour from stem to stern of the W. P. Snyder docked in the river was fascinating. This museum, along with the Campus Maritus Museum which is a block away, is well worth exploring for several hours of pleasure and knowledge.

The Ohio River Museum houses the W.P. Snyder Sternwheeler as well as artifacts of shipping and transportation history up and down the Ohio River. There is a tour of the W.P. Snyder and then you are free to walk to the rest of the museum at your leisure. Definitely a worthwhile stop if you are interested in history or how things used to be done on the Ohio River.The museum is a member of the Ohio History Connection. If you become a member of the annual program, you and a guest can get into this museum for free.

I passed the museum while on the trolley tour and decided to visit. The trolley covers alot of Marietta history.Interesting museum telling the story of the steamboat era. Watched the film showing old footage of actual steamboats on the river. 3 buildings covers all the history of the river with wonderful displays. If you're in Marietta, this museum should be visited

This attraction is located on river and easy to walk around grounds. Take the time to visit the museum and learn about the importance and history of the river and this part of Ohio. Part of the museum is the WP Snyder Jr towboat. You get guided tour of the towboat. Museum comprises of 3 buildings. Friendly and helpful staff.

It was very specific to these river boats but had a heavy mildew odor throughout the three buildings. Proximity to Valley Gem was convenient.

Walking tour along the river and through a building. Learn about the Muskingum river and how the pioneers traveled it.

This is a step back in time and a must visit when in town. Wp snyder will be back at the dock this spring so if you missed it come back take alook

We took a brief side trip to Marietta, OH while in Parkersburg. The historic downtown was really nice, in particular a store called The Kitchen Shop. Friendly store clerks, good pricing, and selection. The River Front museum had great displays.

We had a great lecture/program on the stern wheelers and the museum is well run and has great displays. Bill who, beamed with pride, gave us a thorough tour of the river boat moored at the museum. If you want to learn about river life, commerce, shipping and the men and women and machines that cultivated our great country, visit this place. The gals at the desk were outstanding, gracious and funny.

Wha t a pleasant suprise this museum was. Their revolutionary war exhabits were first rate. Marietta was the first community founded in the North West Territory. Well worth the trip if you are the least bit interested in history

The Ohio River Museum is basically filled with numerous models of historic sternwheelers that once cruised up and down the Ohio River. The models are unbelievably detailed and fun to look at. However, some of the lighting is do dim in parts of the museum containing display cases, it was extremely hard to read any of the information contained therein. Then we went outside to have an escorted tour of the W. P. Snyder Jr., a steam powered sternwheeler. Unfortunately, our escort was boring and not highly informative. One of the other visitors had to explain to his children the mechanics of how a steam engine powers the big paddle wheel. Something the tour guide should have done but failed to explain. This boat is in bad shape and desperately needs some more financial aid to help restore it. Furthermore, if you are physically unable to handle steep stairs, steps, ladders, etc., don’t even try to tour this old relic. The Ohio River Museum and The Campus Martius Museum have admission charges. An adult admission for only one museum is $7, but if you want to tour both museums that day, the admission price is $9 total for both museums. I would have been unhappy if I had paid the full admission price for just the Ohio River Museum. In spite of other reviews that were very favorable, we were disappointed in the museum. In contrast, we first visited the “sister” museum, The Campus Martius Museum, and were highly impressed.

After the Martius Campus, you'll want to visit this museum as well. It has all the history you would expect on boating and ships running on the river. Excellent displays.

This is a cool little museum snuggled along the Muskingham River. The museum offers a history of the transportation vessels used along the Ohio river over the last couple of centuries. It is reasonably priced and is enjoyable. There are plenty of models of steam boats and sternwheelers. The two times that I have been to the museum, they had reenactors throughout the grounds. We were able to converse with Mark Twain and learn more about the river and the sternwheelers. Outside of the museum is a real sternwheel boat which you can tour.