MORGAN CITY - If you have ever wanted to walk onto an authentic oil rig and explore what it's like to work on one, climb aboard Mr. Charlie. The Rig Museum and National Historic Landmark stands in the Atchafalaya River just south of the I-90 bridge and is visited by people from around the world each year.

Virgil Allen has been leading tours of Mr. Charlie for 30 years. He knows the rig inside and out and looks forward to answering any questions you may have. WBRZ visited with Allen after the clouds cleared on a Monday morning in August and spent a couple of hours exploring.

In the 1950s, Alden "Doc" LaBorde had the idea of a floating, portable rig with a submersible barge; one that was able to reach underwater oil fields. Mr. Charlie is the rig he eventually built, which is the first of its kind.

"Every drilling rig out there today is modeled after this rig, but now for much deeper water depths," said Allen. 

Mr. Charlie drilled hundreds of wells for major oil companies operating in the Gulf of America. It's the only place in the world where the general public can walk on board an authentic drilling rig. 

The rig can accommodate a crew of 58 and is still used as a training facility for work offshore alongside its role as a museum.

It's open for guided tours, Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.