The historic Mississippi River paddle wheeler Delta Queen will likely make its last trip down the Big Muddy a year from October.
The old wooden ship cannot pass present-day safety standards and will apparently not be approved for overnight passenger service when the boat's current 10-year exemption certificate expires.
This will be a sad day for river buffs. The Memphis Queen bell was used on a boat that carried Mark Twain down the river in the 1880's.
Hopefully the 81-year-old lady will not be destroyed. Perhaps some smart entrepreneur could develop a profitable limited route that utilizes the boat in the daytime and shore accommodations at night.
Ole Man River will miss the Memphis Queen.
So will we.
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