Melvin Price Lock And Dam — Attraction in Alton

A great place for anyone of any age group. Inside is a museum that not only shows the history of the dam, but also shows the wildlife you would find along the river.

Gift shop is very nice & neat and there are snacks and beverages you can purchase in their if you get a little hungry at any time.

There are activities for the kids as well as a scavenger hunt for kids when you first walk in with your kids/family.

They have a tour guide that will take you outside on the side of the dam, and then will take you to the very top of the dam where you will experience an incredible view of the mighty Mississippi. If you're lucky, you may even get to watch the gate open/close. It's truly amazing to see.

From above the dam you will get to see multiple things all at once. You will see how the dam operates, the strong current as the river as it passes through, birds/wildlife as well as fish such as Carp and Long Nose Gar (The gar are my favorite).

Once back inside they also have a small theatre room where you can sit and relax for awhile as you watch a short documentary video, showing you more about the river and the dam.

I would highly recommend taking kids here for them to have an...

I visited as a child on a field trip and didn’t really take everything in. (I was more into World History and Geometry...) Anyways, my partner and I love museums and exploring the area and finally made it back to the Melvin Price Lock and Dam this past weekend. It was a neat experience and though we didn’t get the normal tour due to construction, we still enjoyed our time and will be back in the Spring! Hunter was very intelligent and informative with the tour and his knowledge of the history and other Lock and Dam locations throughout the Mississippi River. Aside from the tour, the museum was well kept and clean. We both tried the simulator and that was amusing. We spent a little over an hour there in total but it was a cool, gloomy day. I think we will stay longer next time and walk around the path/pavilion outside to watch some barges and...

The Melvin Price Lock and Dam is impressive. A visit here features a museum, and an excellent guided tour.Tours are free, and occur daily at 10a.m., 1p.m., and 3p.m.(arrive at least 15 minutes before tour time) In the National Great Rivers Museum (inside the main building) one of the challenges is taking the controls of a Towboat simulator with barges attached and steering them appropriately to miss stationary objects downstream. It was fun! The tour takes visitors out to vantage points including one right above the locks where you'll see a close-up view of barges locking through this southernmost lock and dam on the the mighty Mississippi River just north of St. Louis. Plan to spend an hour or two, so get there by early afternoon at the latest. Parking is free and plentiful. Expect a security check on your way into...