Guttenberg Fish Hatchery and Aquarium

A predecessor to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Bureau of Fisheries, established the Guttenberg Fish Hatchery and Aquarium in 1939. The facility consists of the hatchery and aquarium building, the superintendent's house, a garage, and a pump house. The buildings are historically significant for their association with the federal government's conservation efforts in Iowa, which began in 1903. In terms of architecture, the buildings are also typical examples of federally funded institutional buildings erected during the Great Depression. The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991 as the Guttenberg National Fish Hatchery and Aquarium Historic District. The facility is now owned by the state and operated by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. In early Spring, staff collect adult male and female northern pike fish and bring them to the hatchery to spawn. The new born fish are then distributed throughout Iowa.

As noted above, the Bureau of Fisheries initiated its conservation work in Iowa in 1903, focusing its efforts on the Mississippi River. A crew was stationed at the town of Bellevue that year and another was established in 1904 at the town of Marquette. The crews transported fish to a hatchery at the town of Manchester where the fish were then delivered throughout the state. The Bureau expanded its fish rescue operations in 1917 when it built holding stations at the two stations and created another crew in Fairport; a fourth crew was then established here in Guttenberg in 1921. The Bureau also built a mussel research station at the town of Fairport in 1910.

The Bureau's fish rescue operations ended in the late 1930s. Around that time, Guttenberg residents started to call for a hatchery and aquarium to be built. The local Congressman at the time, Fred Biermann, secured funds for the project and construction of the hatchery began in late 1938 and was completed in July the next year. The federal government also bought Twelve Mile Island, which is in the middle of the river to the east of facility, and built rearing ponds that appear to still be used today. Building the hatchery and aquarium represented the Bureau's commitment to conservation and sport fishing in the Upper Mississippi River. The Bureau, in fact, was instrumental in establishing the Upper Mississippi Valley Fish and Wildlife Refuge in 1924.

The Upper Mississippi Valley Fish and Wildlife Refuge acquired the rearing ponds in 1971. In 1974, the Guttenberg, Fairport and Manchester facilities were transferred to the state. The state later acquired the titles of all three from the federal government in 1986. Visitors to the Guttenberg facility can see aquarium exhibits of fish from the Mississippi River and local streams.

"The Aquarium - Guttenberg, Iowa." Iowa Beautiful. Accessed October 15, 2021. http://www.iowabeautiful.com/northeast-iowa-tourism/461-aquarium-guttenberg-iowa.html.

Conrad, Rebecca. "Guttenberg National Fish Hatchery and Aquarium Historic District." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. December 23, 1991. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/3c61f6f0-d9d8-4a63-8c61-b53f415c8ab8.

"Fish Aquarium and Hatchery." Northeast Iowa Tourism Association. Accessed October 15, 2021. https://www.visitiowa.org/business/fish-aquarium-and-hatchery.html.

"Iowa's Fish Hatcheries." Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Accessed October 15, 2021. https://www.iowadnr.gov/About-DNR/DNR-Staff-Offices/Fish-Hatcheries/Guttenburg-Fish-Hatchery.