Ohio River Research Paper

Introduction
The Ohio River has had a big impact on Southern Illinois’ history. It helped with the expansion west and also helped with the early economy and market. The Ohio River became more trafficked by flatboats in the late eighteen hundreds early nineteen hundreds. The Ohio River is an English name. It came from the Iroquois word “O-Y-O,” meaning “the great river” .It was used as a faster way to transport goods to New Orleans and also to aid settlers on their pilgrimage west. 1765-1820 was considered the Golden Age of Flat Boating because of the high amounts that they were being used for transportation. For most of its history, the Ohio River was peaceful with very little amounts of violence. Yet, the Ohio River in Southern Illinois has
He set up “Wilson’s Liquor Vault and House of Entertainment” which was used as a decoy to lure in people passing by. The Wilson Gang would then rob and sometimes even kill the passenger for the cargo they carried on their flatboats down the river. This happened for a while until rumors got out about the outlaws and what they did. When the Wilson Gang heard of these rumors most fled in fear of what would happen if they stayed and the ones who stayed were later arrested for their wrongdoings. In the midst of all the chaos Jim Wilson was killed by his own men in exchange for the reward. The death of Wilson opened up a spot for a new outlaw to come into
It is the source of drinking water for over 3 million people who live along the river. Over 25 million people (10% of the US population) live within the Ohio River basin. It is regulated by a series of ten dams controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers. This helps provide many jobs to citizens in the US. The downfall to the dam system though is the negative effects it has on the river habitat. One example of this is the mussel species that live in the river. At one time there were 80 species of mussels living in the river, but today there are only 50 with 5 species in danger of becoming extinct. Even with the bad effects the river is starting to have it still is a great way to transport goods and services toward the west of the country. The Southern Illinois that most know of today is nothing like it was back then. Today Illinois is a friendly place for the whole family to visit. There are many different things to do and see. At a glance the Ohio River has definitely played a big role in Southern Illinois, despite the violence that came along with the river. The area has changed a lot since the early eighteen hundreds and will continue to change as time goes