PEARL BUTTON MUSEUM

MUSCATINE, IA

Railfanning below zero A cold day in January finds IAIS train CBBI running 1 by 1 near Walcott, Iowa. We counted 30 cars and trucks in the ditch between Iowa City and Davenport on the way down the previous night.
Railfanning below zero Credit: chief_huddleston

The Pearl Button Museum in Muscatine, Iowa is a unique attraction that showcases the history of the pearl button industry in the area. The museum is located in the Muscatine History and Industry Center and features a collection of artifacts, photographs, and exhibits that tell the story of the industry that once thrived in the region.

The museum is named after the pearl button, which was a major product of the industry. Pearl buttons were made from mussel shells that were harvested from the Mississippi River and then processed by local factories. The industry reached its peak in the early 1900s, and Muscatine became known as the "Pearl Button Capital of the World."

Visitors to the Pearl Button Museum can see displays of tools and machinery used in the button-making process, as well as examples of finished products. There are also exhibits that highlight the impact of the industry on the local economy and the community as a whole.

The museum is open year-round, and admission is free. It is a must-visit destination for anyone interested in the history of Muscatine and the pearl button industry that once defined the region.

PEARL BUTTON MUSEUM is a Historical Societies, Historic Preservation in MUSCATINE IA. US MID #8401900442

The museum is classed as HSC (Historical Societies, Historic Preservation). It comes under American Alliance of Museums (AAM) region: Midwest (Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Wisconsin). Total revenue from most recent IRS 990 Form: $ 82,453 from tax period 201212 (YYYYMM).

Railfanning below zero A cold day in January finds IAIS train CBBI running 1 by 1 near Walcott, Iowa. We counted 30 cars and trucks in the ditch between Iowa City and Davenport on the way down the previous night.
IAIS CBBI 20 Under a clear blue October sky, IAIS CBBI 20 starts into the curve at Durant, Iowa
Island Number 319 Work barges in the Mississippi River Near Davenport and the Quad Cities.
Modigliani The long journey nears its end as UPs donation train passes the small town of Durant, Iowa and the cemetery beside it. As our train nears the homestretch, one can't help but marvel at the whole thing. Long-dead locomotives and even rollingstock, each one carrying with it plenty of history and stories alike, now have a fresh chance at life they wouldn't have gotten otherwise. The Challenger has been dormant for a dozen years, and the 5511 five times that. Even the DDA40X, not pictured here, hasn't been roaming around for a fair few years now. It will be one hell of a day when they and the rest of the equipment have new life breathed into them. I can't even imagine how insane the roads and photolines will be when those days come. Oh, boy. At least they were somewhat manageable here. More than once, people came and parked right in front of my shot, but thanks to another railfan intervening, we got the space cleared for our shots, and we got that striking view of the slow moving train. The days storms can be seen back behind the dormant steamers, and in fact some of those clouds were just overhead. Very, very narrow timing granted us a sliver of clear sky and the light we needed for our shots. Nice when things work out that way, eh?
Out of Stock(ton) At a local logging/woodchip company in Stockton, the IAIS 6988 flies backwards towards Wilton to restart the next excursion. On a busy day where you can get only one or two shots per run, there was only so many opportunities for shots in towns. Stockton was one I would have liked to have shot more of, but I had just the one shot - and for all intents and purposes, it worked out well enough.
Chickweed Geometer Moth (Haematopis grataria) 2021-08-14 (1) Chickweed Geometer Moth (Haematopis grataria) - 14 August 2021 - Wulf Road, Walcott, Scott County, Iowa
Familiar Bluet (Enallagma civile) 2021-08-14 (2) Familiar Bluet (Enallagma civile) - 14 August 2021 - Wulf Road, Walcott, Scott County, Iowa
Walcott, Iowa Water Tower 2021-08-14 (1) Walcott Water Tower - 14 August 2021 - Walcott, Scott County, Iowa
Drift Away The race to Moscow was one that wasn't particularly hard to do, but when you make a wrong turn before your target - well, that doesn't make things very easy. On my approach to the bridge over the Cedar River, I took a turn too early, ending up by the south side of the bridge. In my all-too-tired brain in the morning, I had readily assumed that was the sun side. Spoiler: it wasn't. I spun the car around and flew down the road to get to the right place - not far, but with the QJ barreling down the tracks, it wasn't a sure thing, either. I parked on the grass and sprinted down the gravel road to where dozens of others were all prepared, taking a seat on the edge of the riverbank. It wasn't even 30 seconds later that we heard the whistle, and not even half that time until the train broke through the trees and across the river. Not quite enough time to get really ready, but enough to get the camera up anyway. Cutting it close is something I seem to have found a natural talent for...
Not Over Til We Say So IAIS 700 becomes the leader of the excursion train, dragging the steamer and the coaches back west to its temporary home in South Amana. At West Liberty, we can find the lines original Rock Island heritage standing right in front of us with the wonderfully maintained CRI&P brick depot, fitted with a train order signal and a fine double-headed searchlight.
State of the Nation As the IAIS 6988 is dragged back to Wilton for its last run by, we’re greeted with an interesting juxtaposition. Dressed up in new American garb, the Chinese steam engine meanders past an American graveyard - at the trailing edge of a pandemic that ultimately traces its roots back to China. It’s been a strange last few years, and it makes you wonder what the future has in store - for the individual countries, the world, and even the little steam engine that crossed an ocean. How peculiar.
Big red Dodge truck at the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum in Walcott, Iowa

Contact PEARL BUTTON MUSEUM

HISTORIC MUSCATINE INC
117 W 2ND ST
MUSCATINE
IA
52761-3714

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PEARL BUTTON MUSEUM Information

MID # 8401900442
Name HISTORIC MUSCATINE INC
Alternate Name PEARL BUTTON MUSEUM
Classification Historical Societies, Historic Preservation, , Midwest
Federal Employer Identification Number (EIN) 421298070
NTEECC
Tax period of the latest return filed (YYYYMM) 201212
INCOME 122,449
REVENUE 82,453
LAT/LONG 41.421561, -91.058363
CODES FIPS State Code: 19
FIPS County Code: 139
US Census Tract: 050900
US Census Block: 2037