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The River

The River. By: Lizzy, Kevin, David, Matt, Peter, and Sam. Commerce of the Mississippi. Most of the commerce was based on the transportation of goods with the use of steamboats. Some of these goods include timber, cotton, produce, and iron ore. Transportation.

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The River

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  1. The River By: Lizzy, Kevin, David, Matt, Peter, and Sam

  2. Commerce of the Mississippi • Most of the commerce was based on the transportation of goods with the use of steamboats. • Some of these goods include timber, cotton, produce, and iron ore.

  3. Transportation • The steamboats provided transportation, bringing slaves, merchants, immigrants and farmers • As the job opportunities increased, so did the wealth of the region.

  4. Gambling • Gambling took many forms on riverboats. • Gambling in towns was frowned upon and were quickly ran out by uptight residents. • Due to the fact that the government had no regulation over the waters, a clever idea hatched. • Casinos soon transferred over to the riverboats • Bets were made on a favorite vessel, races would also cause fires to break out on the wooden decks due to the fact they were pushing the boilers so hard.

  5. Development of Railroads • In the middle of the nineteenth century, the development of railroads took part. • The railroads took up the market that used to belong to the rivers thus resulting in a decline of commerce.

  6. Steamboats of the Mississippi

  7. The steamboat was first successfully constructed by John Fitch.

  8. Steamboats: • First arrived in 1812. • Greatly changed how Americans moved along the river. • Were referred to as “floating palaces”.

  9. Transported cotton, livestock, hay, corn, dry goods, wines, luxuries, animal skins, timber, farm produce, and iron ore. • Provided jobs and increased the wealth of the river communities. • Brought merchants, immigrants, farmers, soldiers, and slaves to the river regions.

  10. Stone wharves and warehouses were built as steamboats became more common.

  11. The steamboat Sultana blew up and sank on April 27, 1865. • About 1700 people perished, worse than the Titanic disaster.

  12. Steamboats became less common as railroads developed after 1880.

  13. Huckleberry Finn’s Travel

  14. Huck and Jim, his temporary traveling partner and escaped slave, start their journey from Jackson’s Island on a raft that he and Jim scavenged. They would journey, for the most part, on this raft until they reach the Phelp’s farm.

  15. Geology of the Mississippi River

  16. Facts • The Mississippi is the largest river system in North America and 4th longest in the world at 2,320 miles in length • The river’s source is Lake Itasca in Minnesota and empties into the Gulf of Mexico, just south of New Orleans • Ranges from 3 feet in depth to 200 feet • At its widest, it is 1 mile across

  17. History of the Mississippi • 1541-Present

  18. European Exploration • Hernandez de Soto was a Spanish explorer and was the first recorded European to find the Mississippi River, May 8th, 1541. • Later on into the 17th century French explorers were exploring the river and claimed the whole Mississippi River Valley for France. • In the 18th century shortly after Britain's victory in the seven years’ war, Britain claimed land to the East of the River and France took the West. (Treaty of Paris 1763) • The U.S. had a conflict with Spain, regarding land in Florida ending with Spain signed Pinckney’s Treaty. (1795) • In the 19th century the U.S. bought the Louisiana Purchase from France in 1803, but the U.S. only gained complete control of the Mississippi once they gained a victory in the battle of New Orleans. • Exploration of the Mississippi finally ended in the early 19th century once the U.S. settled in the Mississippi River Basin.

  19. Civil War • The control of the river was vital for the Unions victory in the Civil war. • It led them down the river to clear confederate forces. • It also led them up the river to capture New Orleans, this gave them complete control of the river. • With the control of the river it led them to the Vicksburg campaign, which was a key victory for the Union and eventually ended in victory of the Union.

  20. 20thand 21st Centuries • The Big Freeze of 1918-1919, prevented transportation of coal from Illinois. • The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927, putting 27,000 square miles of land under 30 feet of water, and killing about 200 people. • October 20th, 1976, a automobile ferry was hit by a ship traveling upstream and killed 78 people. • In 1988 there were record low water levels for the Mississippi, recorded at 10 feet. Ship parts were jutting out from the water. • The Great Flood of 1993, another pretty significant flood mainly affecting places near Cairo, Illinois. • 2002, Slovenian long distance swimmer swims entire length of the Mississippi River. (68 days) • August 1st 2007, I-35W Mississippi Bridge in Minneapolis collapses.

  21. Citations: Ambrose, Stephen. “Remembering Sultana”. May, 2001. National Geographic.com Bowden, Rob. Settlements of the Mississippi River. Chicago: Heinemann Library, Reed Elsevier Inc., 2005. Lourie, Peter. Mississippi River: A Journey Down the Father of Waters. Honesdale: Caroline House Boyds Mills Press, Inc., 2000. Moore, Richard. "Rivers of Life: History of Transportation, Part 1." The History of Transportation on the Mississippi River. Web. 13 Jan. 2011.

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