Sultana Disaster Museum

A small blue building is marked as “Sultana: The Exhibit.” Featured prominently, a mural shows the flaming Sultana burning on the water.
Learn all about the worst maritime disaster in U.S. history at the Sultana Disaster Museum in Marion...
An original photograph shows the Sultana steamship in port, loaded with passengers. Smoke rises from the funnels. Passengers gleefully hold their hats in the air as a farewell gesture.
One of only two surviving photographs of the ill-fated Sultana, taken by Helena photographer Thomas ...
A mural depicts the Sultana erupting in flame against the night sky. People and wreckage fill the water. The silhouettes of desperate passengers leap from the ship into the water. Flames pour from the smokestacks.
The Sultana mural captures the awe and desperation of one harrowing night long ago....
A room-sized replica of the steamship Sultana is presented behind a glass partition. A bright red paddlewheel is visible. Above it, red and black letters denote “Sultana.” The ship is white, with intricate railings, cables and other details visible.
See a replica of the original Sultana at the museum....
A huge replica of the steamship Sultana is housed in the center of a room, taking up almost all the space. The complex model reaches the ceiling, with details of the original recreated in its artistry. The ship’s American flag is held at half-mast.
The museum’s 14-foot Sultana replica was constructed by Gene Salecker and is now a focal point of th...
The rusted frame of a handgun is mounted on a wooden background bearing the name and likeness of the Sultana. A plaque describes the gun as once belonging to Captain William Friesner, noted as the “last man off the ship.”
Various artifacts from the Sultana and its passengers are on display in the museum....
A wooden curio case is on display. In it is carved a crude alligator and the message “saved by a alligator” beneath the name of the original owner, Private William Lugenbeal. A photo of the owner, coin purse and other artifacts are also on display.
Passenger keepsakes from the ill-fated Sultana are preserved at the museum....
A collection of Civil War photographs is placed individually in stands. Each shows the photo, name and military rank of a Union POW about the Sultana.
Civil war photographs preserve the faces of more than 100 known Sultana POW passengers. ...
A collection of artifacts is on display including Civil War photos and a curio box belonging to Private Abraham Cassel, labeled as a Sultana survivor.
These artifacts belonged to Sultana survivor Private Abraham Cassel. ...
A group of people is looking at various artifacts in the Sultana Disaster Museum. Maps and images cover the walls. A glass display case contains standing photos.
Sultana Disaster Museum attracts visitors from near and far....
The historic 1938 Marion School Auditorium-Gymnasium is featured here. This venue now under renovation will soon be the permanent home of the Sultana Disaster Museum.
The 1938 Marion School Auditorium-Gymnasium, one of the most historical buildings in eastern Arkansa...
The Sultana Tragedy. On April 27, 1865, the vessel exploded on the Mississippi River while overfilled with Union POWs. More than 1,800 of the 2,500 passengers & crew onboard perished that night. No one was ever punished for the incident.
The Sultana Tragedy is an important but little-known part of American history. ...
A small blue building is marked as “Sultana: The Exhibit.” Featured prominently, a mural shows the flaming Sultana burning on the water.
An original photograph shows the Sultana steamship in port, loaded with passengers. Smoke rises from the funnels. Passengers gleefully hold their hats in the air as a farewell gesture.
A mural depicts the Sultana erupting in flame against the night sky. People and wreckage fill the water. The silhouettes of desperate passengers leap from the ship into the water. Flames pour from the smokestacks.
A room-sized replica of the steamship Sultana is presented behind a glass partition. A bright red paddlewheel is visible. Above it, red and black letters denote “Sultana.” The ship is white, with intricate railings, cables and other details visible.
A huge replica of the steamship Sultana is housed in the center of a room, taking up almost all the space. The complex model reaches the ceiling, with details of the original recreated in its artistry. The ship’s American flag is held at half-mast.
The rusted frame of a handgun is mounted on a wooden background bearing the name and likeness of the Sultana. A plaque describes the gun as once belonging to Captain William Friesner, noted as the “last man off the ship.”
A wooden curio case is on display. In it is carved a crude alligator and the message “saved by a alligator” beneath the name of the original owner, Private William Lugenbeal. A photo of the owner, coin purse and other artifacts are also on display.
A collection of Civil War photographs is placed individually in stands. Each shows the photo, name and military rank of a Union POW about the Sultana.
A collection of artifacts is on display including Civil War photos and a curio box belonging to Private Abraham Cassel, labeled as a Sultana survivor.
A group of people is looking at various artifacts in the Sultana Disaster Museum. Maps and images cover the walls. A glass display case contains standing photos.
The historic 1938 Marion School Auditorium-Gymnasium is featured here. This venue now under renovation will soon be the permanent home of the Sultana Disaster Museum.
The Sultana Tragedy. On April 27, 1865, the vessel exploded on the Mississippi River while overfilled with Union POWs. More than 1,800 of the 2,500 passengers & crew onboard perished that night. No one was ever punished for the incident.

What to know

"The Titanic of the Mississippi" - Clive Cussler, award-winning author and historian

The Sultana was a Civil War era, paddlewheel steamboat whose destruction in an explosion on April 27, 1865 has the distinction as the “Greatest Maritime Disaster in United States History”. Over 1,800 of the Sultana’s 2,300 passengers were killed when three of the boat’s boilers exploded and the Sultana sank just north of Marion, Arkansas.

The Sultana Disaster Museum focuses on the steamboat itself, from its construction to destruction and the aftermath of the disaster. Passenger stories are also presented - who they were and where they came from - as well as the stories of the rescuers and eyewitnesses. Visit Marion, a small town in the Delta, and learn more about this Forgotten Tragedy

The present Sultana Disaster Museum, created in 2015, and providing less than 1000 square feet, will soon be replaced by a permanent modern museum of nearly 17,000 square feet with state-of-the-art concepts.

Phone:
(870) 559-6731
Address:
140 Washington Ave.,
Marion, AR 72364
Get Directions
View Map