The CAA Museum has been closed since 2019 following the historic flood of that year and the 2020 Covid shutdown. We are working to reopen the museum for 2025, but we need your help!
In 2019, Kampsville experienced the second worst flood on record. Approximately 4 feet of Illinois River floodwater entered the museum, cresting on June 7. The Museum has been flooded several times over the years, including during the Great Flood of 1993 and twice each in 2013 and 2015.
Repeated flooding damages the historic building and, of course, makes it unusable as both a museum and a dormitory. No collections were threatened at any time during the many Illinois River floods we’ve experienced. The building itself, unfortunately, has been affected repeatedly.
The 2019 flood damaged the interior of the building, including several heavy, unmovable display cases. The 2020 Covid shutdown and cancellation of CAA programs delayed repairs and reopening.
To solve the problem of recurrent flooding in the CAA Museum/Kamp Store, the CAA with the Village of Kampsville applied for and have been awarded a Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant from FEMA to relocate the building in Kampsville to a lot outside of the floodplain.
Kamp Store Relocation Project
The Kamp Store Relocation Project is supported by a FEMA BRIC grant to move the Kamp Store from its current location to another CAA property outside of the floodplain. The new location is an empty lot next to the CAA’s Main Office.
The new location is next to the Kamp Mansion, built by M. A. Kamp in 1882. The empty lot is part of the original Kamp property. Neither the 1993 nor the 2019 floods, the two largest on record, flooded this property.
Relocating the building to the new location means permanently protecting it from future floods. It also means both the museum and dormitory will remain accessible even during high water.
We Need Your Help!
This project is expensive, but worth the cost to protect this historic building. The BRIC grant provides 90% of the total project cost. The CAA is providing the remaining 10%.
| Project Share | Cost |
| FEMA BRIC Grant – 90% | $ 267,228.90 |
| CAA Contribution – 10% | $ 29,692.10 |
| Total Project | $ 296,921.00 |
The CAA is responsible for 10% of the final project costs. These costs do not include future costs to reopen the museum, such as redoing the interior of the building or new cases and displays.
We need your help to make this project happen!
Please donate to the CAA Museum Fund to protect Kamp Store and reopen the CAA museum! All donations received will be used for relocation and improvement of the museum only.
To donate: click the PayPal button below. Please enter Kamp Store in the memo field. You do not need a PayPal account to donate.
Donations by check can be mailed to CAA Museum Fund, PO Box 366, Kampsville, IL 62053.
Questions and comments may be sent to caa@caa-archeology.org.
The Center for American Archeology is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Donations are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.