The Mississippi River has long played a part in the historical, economic and residential development of Vicksburg. To some, the Mississippi River is nothing more than a brown slice of water separating the east bank from the west bank of New Orleans. Scientists call that gap the Mississippi Embayment, but the rest of us know it as the Mississippi Delta, the vast flood plain that stretches from southern Missouri to northern Louisiana. View all Coastal Land Loss. The MISSISSIPPI RIVER The father of waters, the Mississippi River, is one of the longest in the world. Other pollutants such as garbage waste and chemicals were being dumped into the river. The Mississippi has been very important for transportation in the history of the United States. The turbulent, cloudy-to-muddy, and flotsam-laden Missouri, especially when in flood, adds impetus as well as enormous quantities of silt to the clearer Mississippi. This is his first piece for the magazine. The Mississippi River has been carving a path to the ocean since time immemorial, always seeking the shortest and steepest route possible. Its a reason to pay a toll. St. Paul and Minneapolis exist today because of riverboats. A Brief History. Better yet, why not take a cruise along the Mississippi on one of the last remaining steamships in operation! Snow that melts on higher ground also runs into the river. Fur traders plied their trade on the river and soldiers of several nations garrisoned troops at strategic points, at various times, along the river when the area was still on the frontier. Below the Missouri River junction, the middle Mississippi follows a 200-mile (320-km) course to the mouth of the Ohio River. Mark Twain, the best publicist a river ever had, inspired 150 years’ worth of dreams about floating away from our troubles. The first Europeans to see the river where the history of the Mississippi River. At least 144 million gallons of sewage and garbage were being tossed into the river every single day by the 1930's. The Great Flood of 1927 accelerated the Great Migration, as African Americans, disproportionately displaced, sought economic opportunity in cities such as Chicago and Detroit. Throughout the history of the greatest stream in North America, water has meant life, and lots of it. In the early 1800's, steamboats would provide the necessary transportation to move goods and travelers along the river. In the late Cretaceous, around 80 million years ago, a mountain chain spanned the southern portion of the continent, blocking southbound water flows, so most North American rivers flowed to the Western Interior Sea or north to Canada’s Hudson Bay. The MISSISSIPPI RIVER. Founded in 1811 and incorporated on January 29, 1825, Vicksburg rapidly grew as a center for commerce, agriculture and river traffic. Because of the way in which the land forms a kind of bowl-shape around the river, 40% of the moisture that lands on the 48 joined (contiguous) states ends up in the Mississippi! New Orleans School of Cooking Zoom Classes, Social Distancing in this So So Social City, What You Need to Know: New Orleans Phase 2 Reopening. Until the early 19th century, the Mississippi marked the western border between Spanish and American territory, and it continues to give life to the cities that sprang up along its route. Owned by Jefferson Davis’ brother, the Davis family built two sprawling plantations on the island. And among members of the Ojibwe, Dakota and Chitimacha tribes, who still live on portions of ancestral lands in the Mississippi Valley, a spiritual connection to the river remains strong. The Mississippi River is the chief river of the largest drainage system in North America. It wasn’t the first time. In 1682, a Frenchman by the name of Robert de La Salle reached the mouth of the Mississippi and claimed the entire valley in the name of France. In the past, cities on the river haven't been s fortunate. The true source of the Mississippi is the Jefferson River in Montana. The Mississippi River system is one of the largest and most extensive watersheds in the world. Davis Island, located 20 miles southwest of Vicksburg, MS consists of 30,000 acres.Formerly a peninsula bounded on three sides by the Mississippi River, a shift in the river cut it off from the mainland in 1867. The Western portion was purchased in 1803 by the United States resulting in the largest real estate transaction in human history. But beyond the walls of Historic Fort Snelling, there are few well-known stories that depict the Black experience in Minnesota and more specifically, on the Mississippi River. Was this the worst flood of the Mississippi River since European colonization of North America? Nevertheless, regardless of one's perception, this body of water tout's an irrefutably significant history - A history that defines this region, and this country, for better or for worse, to heck or high flood water. Where are you, Walt? We serve cookies to analyze traffic and customize content on this site. Zebulon Pike, the U.S. Army officer who in 1805 led an exploring party in search of the source of the Mississippi River, sets off with a new expedition to explore the American Southwest. That disaster also ushered in an era of unprecedented public works, as the federal government sought to remake the river into a predictable route for moving bulk necessities like corn and coal. This means, when there is lots of snow in the winter, or heavy rains, the river tends to flood. Drainage basin of the Mississippi River. |. To the Native American peoples of the river, the Mississippi was both highway and larder. Dean Klinkenberg is a writer based in St. Louis. Native Americans lived along its banks and used the river for sustenance and transportation. Length of the Mississippi River. During the 1937 flood, Raymond Daniell wrote in the New York Times about frantic efforts to raise barriers “faster than old man river could rise.”. They called the joining of the two rivers Bdote Minisota. The former Mississippi River valley was later claimed by the Illinois River as the glaciers retreated. The voyage marked the beginning of commercial steam navigation on inland rivers and led to revolutionary economic and cultural change. “Ol’ Man River” buoyed Show Boat, the 1927 musical by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II. Still, 70 million years ago the Mississippi was nowhere near as large as it would become. The answer is a solid “maybe.” Soto and his group of over 200 men traveled from what is now modern day Tampa, Florida in the southeastern direction in the hope of discovering treasures. On August 1, 1993, the Great Mississippi and Missouri Rivers Flood of 1993 came to its peak. Sign up for our mailing list to receive information on the latest New Orleans news, events, and attractions! Continue Photo credit: Minnesota Historical Society Cue Robert Hickman, born a slave in 1831 on a Boone County plantation just off the Missouri River who worked as a log splitter. In 1682, a Frenchman by the name of Robert de La Salle reached the mouth of the river and claimed it in the name of his country France. The western portion was eventually purchased by the United States in 1803, resulting in the largest real estate transaction in human history - The Louisiana Purchase. The river is the fourth longest river with a length of 3,730 km; and flows at an average of one third of human walking speed. And it might even become that big again in the future. Her original master, Captain “Doc” Hawley, is a modern-day river legend and the world authority on steamboat history. Louisiana Goes Back to a Modified Stage 2, Commander’s Palace Has A New Executive Chef, Here’s What’s Up Down Here with Covid Restrictions, We Believe: Gray Line's Ghost Tour Is Spooky Fun, Ten Trippy Horror Films & TV Shows Set in New Orleans, Yum! This article is a selection from the September issue of Smithsonian magazine. Mississippi River History. The Port of New Orleans alone serves as the 6th largest port in the United States, with the collective ports of South Louisiana boasting the 9th overall ranking in the world. The Mississippi River is known for its epic floods and these destructive events led to the creation of levees along North America's longest river. Around 60 million years ago, the Mississippi was collecting water from the Rockies to the Appalachians; by four million years ago, its watershed had extended into Canada, and the Mississippi … Approximately 50,000 years ago, the Central United States was covered by an inland sea, which was drained by the Mississippi and its tributaries into the Gulf of Mexico—creating large floodplains and extending the continent further to the south in the process. It is about 2,350 miles long. To purchase this grand book of river history, tall tales, and beautiful photography you can call 504-587-0733, or order on line with paypal at: Gift Products In 1758, the French ethnographer Antoine-Simon Le Page du Pratz published The History of Louisiana, in which he wrote that the Mississippi River’s name meant “the ancient father of rivers.” Though his etymology was off—the Ojibwe words that gave us Mississippi (Misi-ziibi) actually mean “long river”—the idea has proven durable. Mississippi River - Mississippi River - History and economy: As its respectful Indian name indicates, the Mississippi played an important role in the lives of the aboriginal peoples settled on its banks. History of Old River . These are the extraordinary new findings unearthed by geologists including Sally Potter-McIntyre at Southern Illinois University, Michael Blum at the University of Kansas and Randel Cox at the University of Memphis, whose work is helping us better understand the monumental events, beginning in late Cretaceous North America, that gave rise to the Mississippi, swelling it to gargantuan proportions. On his way, on May 8, 1541, Soto became the first person with a recorded history of reaching the Mississippi River. The history of the state of Mississippi extends to thousands of years of indigenous peoples. When it rains a lot, the water hits the ground and runs into the river. Cookie Policy So the river’s larger-than-life role in culture was perhaps inevitable. The Jefferson runs into the Missouri River, which runs into the Mississippi. With the Mississippi River nearing record levels on May 2, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers blew up a levee to save the small town of Cario, Ill., from devastating flooding. Eventually, a gap in those mountains formed, opening a path for the river we now know as the Mississippi to flow to the Gulf of Mexico. 1, Spring 2008 To the Mdewakanton Dakota it has deep historic and spiritual meaning. Check out the links below and tell 'em the guys at 'Experience New Orleans' sent ya! 10, No. The father of waters, the Mississippi River, is one of the longest in the world. Among the numerous plant, animal, and insect species to call the Mississippi home are water birds, with over 60% of the continent’s birds migrating north and south along the river system annually. Smithsonian Institution, Smithsonian Magazine Vote Now! In the 1800s, many steamboats traveled on the Mississippi River. Keep up-to-date on: © 2020 Smithsonian Magazine. ? In modern times, the Mississippi River has also played … Privacy Statement Advertising Notice Give a Gift. During the Illinoisan and Wisconsinan glaciations (300,000 to 10,000 years ago), glacial till and moraines created dams that rerouted the Mississippi River to the west. To understand the solutions available to stop this land loss crisis around the Mississippi River Delta, it’s important to look back at how the delta was created. Evidence of their cultures has been found largely through archeological excavations, as well as existing remains of earthwork mounds built thousands of years ago. Now, we are going to approach the question from the other direction. California Do Not Sell My Info Blum has detailed how the waterway grew as it added tributaries: the Platte, Arkansas and Tennessee rivers by the late Paleocene, then the Red River by the Oligocene. The Mississippi River is the largest and most important river in North America. 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