An alligator was the mascot of the steamboat Sultana, which caught fire, killing hundreds of Civil War soldiers. A new museum in Marion, Ark., is confident kids will sink their teeth into the story of the beast and one lucky passenger

Alligator curious made for or by soldier William Lugenbeal, plush gators in the museum gift shop

Kids coming to the revamped Sultana Disaster Museum in Marion, Ark., are sure to be awed by a giant mockup of the doomed steamboat. Beyond that, a lot of stories are geared to get their attention, including the Sultana’s legendary alligator.

One of the most remembered survivors of the April 1865 maritime tragedy was Union Pvt. William Lugenbeal, who fatally injured the Sultana's pet alligator and floated to safety in its sturdy wooden crate.

The museum has two canes from Lugenbeal, one pipe, one napkin ring, and a curio box -- all decorated with the image of an alligator and inscribed to the man who was "saved by a alligator." 

Museum executive director Jeff Kollath purchased a taxidermied alligator, which will be in a crate near the bow of the Sultana mockup. A display case will include the Lugenbeal artifacts.

A small portion of the large mockup of the steamboat (Sultana Disaster Museum)

Workers are rushing to complete exhibits before the Nov. 14 grand opening in Marion, west of Memphis, Tenn.

“I could not put a percentage of how much the final design was with kids in mind. Our museum will have elements that appeal to all ages,” said John Fogleman, president of the Sultana Historical Preservation Society.

Still, the museum gift shop has many items that will appeal to the younger set, including alligator plush toys.

Gene Salecker, a Sultana author, artifacts collector and a member of the nonprofit that is building the museum, recently drove from Illinois to Marion to reassemble his 14-foot model of the steamboat. He took it apart when the first Sultana museum closed earlier this year in preparation for the new site.

Whereas that model was the centerpiece of the venue’s tiny former location a couple blocks, the star of the new museum – in a former high school gymnasium – will be the large mockup of the Sultana.

“I am thinking that the school groups will find the main exhibit area the most exciting. Actually being able to walk unto the ‘deck’ of the Sultana will be a thrill to them,” Salecker said in an email to the Picket.

Marion – across the Mississippi River from Memphis, Tenn. -- is near where the Sultana caught fire and exploded in late April 1865, killing about 1,200 people, including hundreds of Union soldiers who had just been released from Confederate prisons and were heading home.

A small room (left) at the new site represents Cahaba prison. "You can see the crude bunk beds that were built in one section of the prison building," said the Sultana researcher.

The tragedy was largely forgotten because it occurred shortly after President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated and a hunt ensued for the killers.

With only a few artifacts directly associated with the Sultana, the presentation will need to be heavy on stories, and there is no shortage. Visitors will learn about passengers, rescuers, overcrowding, greed, graft and much more.

“I really liked the fact that they had dozens and dozens of quotes (above) along the walls, quotes from people on board the Sultana as well as quotes from rescuers,” said Salecker.

“They had the entire list of names of all of the people that were on board the Sultana during her April 24-27, 1865, trip, and in one section, they have a panel with small, three-inch tall figures representing all of the 2,124 people that were on board the Sultana.Then, a little ways down, there is another panel but this one has many, many gaps in it. This panel represents only the 960 survivors. The two panels give you a wonderful idea of how costly the disaster was.”

The large Sultana model will feature mockups of two engine boilers, one of which shows damage from the explosion (above). "The sides of the boiler were curled back and the tubes within the boiler were all twisted and torn. It really gives you a good idea of what an exploded boiler looked like," Salecker said of the mockup. 

With them will be the engine from the sidewheel steamboat LeRoy. It sank in the Apalachicola River in the Florida Panhandle in November 1840. (Photos by Gene Salecker)

At the rear of the Sultana mockup is a mural painted to show the stern. “You are looking out over the stern railing and the sounding yawl (small rowboat used for checking the depth of the river during low water.),” added Salecker.

Actual pieces from the boat – furnace bricks, shaker plates and a few other items – are expected to be displayed in the main deck area, he said. Reunion ribbons, flags, newsletters and other items from the original Sultana Survivors’ Association also will be in the new location.

The museum will also tell the story of a race between the Sultana and two other steamboats in 1863, a couple years before the disaster. They started in New Orleans and the competition ended in Cairo, Ill. While the Sultana did not win, it was believed to be a swift boat if it had a capable captain and crew.

Officials hope the larger venue will boost learning and tourism in the area.

Restroom includes numerous Sultana motifs, including the alligator (Gene Salecker photo)

Mary Haizlip, principal architect at Haizlip Studio, which is leading the exhibits effort, said the museum already has made an impact by being a community gathering spot during the latter phases of construction.

“The museum will help bridge tourism between Marion, western Arkansas and Memphis,” she told the Picket. “The story is told through interactive exhibits, immersive experiences and little bit of magic that unfolds to draw visitors in and spark learning and excitement about history.”

Marion is getting the word out about a big four-day celebration around the opening.

Soldier descendants attending their 38^th annual reunion in Marion will wear a yellow ribbon similar to those worn by survivors of the disaster.

Sultana Association of Descendants and Friends member Doug Schneider is producing a medallion showing an historic photograph of the Sultana and the exterior of the new site. 

Cutaway showing main saloon, Texas cabin, engine room and the pilot house (Gene Salecker)

Previous Sultana coverage:

• Documentary, events mark 150th anniversary

• Will victim's journal and Bible become part of collection?

• Descendants drop flowers in memory of the lost
• Model captures every detail of Sultana• Disaster took lives of those who had endured so much

• Siblings recall learning of disaster