Bob Fleming and Jeanne Waters placing a wooden tray made out of wood from the Titanic in a display case.
What is it about a ship that has been on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean for almost 98 years that has attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Branson’s “Titanic World’s Largest Museum Attraction” since it opened about four years ago? The mystique of the unsinkable Titanic’s demise after hitting an iceberg in the cold waters of the Atlantic Ocean is undeniable, but the success of the Branson Titanic is due to the entertainment experience it provides its passengers each and every time they board the ship.
During a recent tour of the ship while it was closed for renovations, Mary Kellogg, the co-owner of the attraction with her husband John, said that providing a quality experience for visitors to the ship is a matter of keeping it as clean and fresh looking as the first day it opened and providing reasons for Branson visitors to visit and revisit the ship. “In order to accomplish that, she said. “We have to close it down for four days each year to clean, repaint and renovate the whole ship and bring in new artifacts.”
Even as she said that the Titanic’s parking lot was full of vehicles however, they were not the vehicles of Branson visitors visiting the attraction. They were the vehicles of the “army” of workers that have been working virtually nonstop, 24 hours a days since it closed on the night of January 10, to make sure that the renovations are completed in time for the ship to start boarding passengers again on the morning of January 15. As we went through the ship it became clear that the “renovations” went far beyond just the painting, cleaning, and repairing of the ship.
While the major refurbishing work was being done to the ship, the same detail was being given to every display and artifact. Every display case had been emptied of its artifacts and was being refinished. Kellogg pointed to a huge full wall sized photograph covering one whole wall that had just been replaced. Even the “show cards” describing each display and artifact were replaced.
Artifacts and exhibits are routinely changed so that visitors to the museum will see something new when they revisit. The replacement or placement of artifacts in each display case is an involved process involving a team effort. That effort involves the selection of artifacts, their movement to and from the exhibit, documentation, display design, and precise artifact placement within the display case.
The attention to detail involving just one of the museums many exhibits was amazing. Bob Fleming, who works for the Titanic, designs each display case. Assisted by Jeanne Waters of “Touché Design Group” in Springfield, each artifact and show card is placed within its display case in accordance with the pre determined design scheme for that particular case. Fleming points out that there is no margin for error as when each case is sealed it is airtight and would require the presence of two or more key museum staff members to open.
Artifacts are brought to and from their underground storage by the Museum’s curator Paul Burns and are meticulously documented as they are placed in the specific display case to which they have been assigned. Kellogg said it is the museum’s policy that no exhibit case is opened without their being two key museum employees present.
Kellogg pointed out that the majority of the artifacts in the museum come directly from the Titanic. As but one example, she pointed to a tattered life jacket in an exhibit case and said, “It’s one of only nine lifejackets from the Titanic Life left in the world; of those the Titanic Museum has four. The one on display is the life jacket of Madeleine Astor who survived the sinking of the Titanic while her husband John Jacob Astor perished.
Kellogg is really excited about the addition of the Titanic’s new mascots, Carter and Molly, two King Charles Spaniels. They will begin their duties aboard the ship in March. In addition to a special ceremony each day at noon they will be available for passengers to meet as they pass through the ship. Their display area is being specifically built for them and is a small part of the large dog facility located directly behind the display area where the dogs will be housed, fed and cared for by a person hired specifically to care for and manage them.
Kellogg described the effort and expense of the annual four day shutdown as “an investment in our ship and our visitors.” Somehow one just has to wonder that if the same attention to detail had been paid to the operation of the Titanic on her initial and final voyage whether there would even be a Titanic Museum today, but it wasn’t and the rest is history.
For information on the Titanic Museum in Branson or other Branson shows, attractions or lodging please contact the Branson Tourism Center (BTC), one of Branson’s largest and most respected vacation planning services and sellers of Branson attraction and show tickets and lodging for free assistance. BTC can be reached by calling 800-785-1550 or through its website www.BransonTourismCenter.com.
