Beloved Casino Queen Riverboat retires after 30 years of service. (Image: Bill Grant / Alamy)

The Casino Queen Riverboat will be leaving its berth after thirty years of service to the town of Marquette, Iowa. The riverboat started life around 1994 and has contributed significantly to the area’s community resources.  

The casino equipment onboard, which contains hundreds of slots, will be moving to dry land.  

Executive Director Started as Cashier

Robin Corbeil, the Casino Queen Executive Director, started work on the riverboat casino as a cashier. She experienced firsthand the contribution casino has made to what was a run-down area when she first began working there.   

Corbeil said she has seen a lot of changes and that the town had done a great job in regenerating the area with the money they received from the casino. She said Marquette “is a better place for the residents, the tourists and the businesses.”

The Casino Queen used to cruise along the river full of people but eventually moved to being permanently berthed in Marquette, occupying 17,514 square feet (1,627.1 m²). 

Owned by The Queen Casino & Entertainment, the casino is moored on the Mississippi River and features a 31-acre site that includes an enclosed pavilion, dining facilities on the first floor, and an entertainment showroom/banquet area on the second floor. Currently, the casino offers a selection of 566 slot machines and 8 table games.

Rebrands Part of the History

The Miss Marquette riverboat was purchased from Sodak Gaming in November 1999 for $41.67 million. Shortly after, Isle of Capri Casinos acquired the boat for $47.7 million on October 6, 2000, rebranding it as Isle of Capri Marquette. 

December 2008 brought plans for rebranding to Lady Luck, with the exterior transformation completed in March 2009 and the overall rebranding finalized by August of that year. 

On October 13, 2016, Isle of Capri announced the sale of the Lady Luck branded casino in Marquette, Iowa, to Casino Queen for approximately $40 million. The sale was completed on March 13, 2017, for around $50 million, which helped Isle of Capri redeem outstanding debt.

As of January 26, 2023, Queen Casino & Entertainment received approval from the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission to relocate the casino from the riverboat to a land-based facility.

Construction commenced in the latter half of 2023 to add 12,000 square feet to the existing dockside venue, which already included the Market Street Buffet and an entertainment area. The expansion introduced a new 17,000 square foot casino, new entrances, dining options, and a sports bar, not to mention 400 additional slot machines and two new blackjack tables.

Boat Was Big Part of Local Economy

Speaking about the loss of the riverboat casino, Corbeil said: “It will be sad because it has been here for thirty years.” 

A breaking ground ceremony was held on Tuesday. Corbeil added, "The goal is to be open for the latter half of next year (2025)."

As for the Casino Queen, she will be sold to make way for something new. Marquette Mayor Brittany Hemmer hinted that the boat might just be used to make it part of the new development. Corbeil said there's 'a possibility that tourist boats could use it as a docking spot.' and that the casino is ‘a big part of the local economy’.