The world’s first rubber duck museum?

Neil and Krystal King, the owners of Kora’s Corner, unveiled (according to the Kings) the world’s first historical rubber duck museum in the back room of their store on July 4. Since the grand opening, the museum has rapidly attracted interest and has been featured in a number of publications spanning from Kenya to Colorado. “It’s been wild,” remarked Krystal, reflecting on the interest shown in the

museum.

The museum contains a collection dating back to 1911, showcasing rubber ducks from across the globe. Originally made from hard rubber in the 1800s as chew toys, the first traditional water-friendly rubber ducks were produced in 1949. Among the museum’s prized possessions is one of Ernie’s ducks from Sesame Street, which popularized rubber ducks after their appearance in the 1970 song, “Rubber Duckie.”

“Ernie’s song brought rubber ducks into popularity, shaping them into the familiar form we recognize today,” said Neil.

The Kings have sold rubber ducks since they opened their shop in 2022. Over time, their collection grew, spurred by themed ducks for various holidays. “We didn’t even realize that we had a rubber duck theme already,” explained Krystal, “We have been talking so long about doing an exhibit, and as we already had a few hundred rubber ducks, we decided to go for it.”

Most of the ducks were sourced from vintage toy auctions. When asked why rubber ducks, the couple replied, “Everyone loves rubber ducks. They create feelings of joy, childhood innocence, and nostalgia. There is a rubber duck for everyone. No matter what you like or what you do, there is a duck for you.”

Educational as well as entertaining, the museum explores topics such as duck derbies and the accidental dumping of 28,800 Friendly Floatees – yellow ducks, red beavers, blue turtles and green frogs – that were washed overboard into the Pacific Ocean in 1992. Seattle oceanographers Curtis Ebbesmeyer and James Ingraham began tracking their landfall and created valuable data on ocean currents based on where the floatees were found.

They first made landfall in Alaska and years later were found in pack ice in the Arctic Circle, along the eastern seaboard and across the Atlantic to Greenland and the United Kingdom.

Entrance to the museum is free, with rubber ducks available for purchase starting at $2, alongside themed merchandise like T-shirts, mugs, stickers and signs.

The Kings plan to expand their collection of rubber ducks and related memorabilia. “This is just the beginning,” Krystal said.