This first book to make a detailed exploration of the system of riverboat traffic of the Delta region,
Steamboats and the Cotton Economy
is also the first balanced study showing how steamboats in the early years of the republic performed essentially the same role that railroads would later perform in revolutionizing the interior of the nation. Today, the mention of steamboats conjures up romantic visions of cotton landings and mythological river traders. Some of the steamboats plying the Mississippi-Yazoo Delta waterways give form to the myth. Others call forth the true work-a-day world of steamers loaded with passengers, freight, and sacks of cotton seed. Such ubiquitous trade boats, cotton, gin boats, sawmills boats, as well as ice and mail boats, not only helped to build the Cotton Kingdom but also added rich texture and color to the history of the Delta. In discovering the role of steamboats in the everyday life of the Mississippi Delta, this book reveals the vital economic