The Influence Of Steamboats On The Mississippi River

ENG 102
Spring 2012
Steamboats on the Mississippi River
It was a sunny afternoon in New Orleans, the passengers were starting to board the steamboat and every one of them was smiling while they were entering the boat. The passengers had so much joy and excitement for being part of a ride along the Mississippi river (Déjà Vu), this joy and excitement made me think that an event like this meant something very special for the people of this city. When I knew I had been accepted into the University of Southern Mississippi, I immediately realized that I was going to live close to the Mississippi river and to New Orleans. One month ago I went to New Orleans and I saw for first time the Mississippi river; I was amazed by its size and by the strong
For this reason New Orleans beneficiated greatly from the invention of steamboats, it not only developed as a city but also as a major port in the south of the United States. To travel on board of a steamboat was considered a luxury that not all could afford, only middle high class people could afford to pay a ticket to cross the nation on board of a steamboat. “Steamboats were the main attraction during the mid-eighteen hundreds; everyone wanted to travel on board of steamboats” (Powles 55). These steamboats were equipped with all sorts of luxuries and fine decorations. Ballrooms where people could dance, watch live performances and even to get married were the main attraction of the steamboats. Galleries with famous paints brought from Europe were also exhibit on board of
Entire tribes were destroyed and occupied by new white settlers, who’s only goal was to make profits out of a land that did not belong to them. As Native Americans were being removed from their lands, they were also forced to adapt to a new culture, which in the long run made many Native American tribes disappear .Since the labor was very tough for most Natives Americans because they were not used to work so hard, slaves from Africa were traded and sold all over the steamboat routes, “Blacks replaced the Native Americans in their inhuman obligations in the new plantations along the Mississippi valley” (Smith 358). Exploitation and racial inequality was seen as normal during this time period, and no one really cared about the hard labor and the consequences that these minorities were suffering. The steamboat economic boom lasted for nearly 100 years and during this time period America grew its economy significantly, which motivated the American people to keep innovating things and create other transport sources that can be more efficient that steamboats, such as