Ohio River: the Human Story

Ohio River: the Human Story. . Since the beginning of history, people have been drawn to the river for water, food and transportation., 1. The Earliest People Several archaeological sites at Charlestown reveal stories of temporary camps. Mounds in this region date from the Mississippian Tradition (AD 900-AD 1600). They served as platforms for buildings. Mounds of discarded clam shells have been found in the Ohio River floodplain in Clark County. Clams were once an abundant food source., 2. European Settlement The earliest Europeans depended on hunting and trapping to feed themselves. By the late 1700s, land was being cleared for farms. Streams and horses provided power to drive corn mills. The remains of mills, a leather tannery and a kiln have been identified at Charlestown State Park., 3. Charlestown Landing The Ohio River was an obstacle to the movement of goods and people between Kentucky and Indiana. Charlestown Landing on the Indiana side ran boats to the Harmony Landing on the Kentucky side. The site of Charlestown Landing is upriver from this boat ramp., 4. River Commerce The War of 18 12 introduced steamboats to the Ohio River. The 1830 completion of the Louisville and Portland Canal permitted boats to bypass the Falls of the Ohio. A steady stream of river boats ran goods and produce back and forth from the western frontier to markets east and south., 5. Damming the Ohio River During dry seasons the water level of the Ohio River could be so low that people walked across the river. By 1824, Congress realized that to keep the river as a transportation route, the water level and channel had to be maintained. Dikes were built to divert water along the main channel. In the late 1800s, a project started to build a series of dams along the entire length of the Ohio River. These early dams, now replaced by fewer, larger dams, keep the river at a navigable level., Today, nearly one quarter of the nation's waterborne commerce moves on the Ohio River Basin waterway.