USA > Indiana > Jefferson County > Madison > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Kentucky > Jefferson County > Louisville > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Missouri > St Louis County > St Louis City > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Cincinnati > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Ohio > Montgomery County > Dayton > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Ohio > Muskingum County > Zanesville > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Ohio > Scioto County > Portsmouth > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > Pittsburgh > The western address directory : containing the cards of merchants, manufacturers, and other business men, in Pittsburgh, (Pa.) Wheeling, (Va.) Zanesville, (O.) Portsmouth, (O.) Dayton, (O.) Cincinnati, (O.) Madison, (Ind.) Louisville, (K.) St. Louis, (Mo.) , 1837 > Part 18
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CINCINNATI,
Wholesale dealer and Manufacturer of
SNUFF, CIGIES, AND TOBACCO- and importer of
Virginia Cavendish Tobacco, Cuba and St. Domingo Leaf, and Havana Cigars.
John Fuller, Jr.
WHOLESALE DEALER & MANUFACTURER OF TOBACCO. SMURF & CIGARS.
And importer of Virginia Cavendish, Cuba and St. Do- mingro Tobacco -- with a general assortment of al! kinds of Cut and Leaf. for sale,
MAIN STREET, CINCINNATI.
TORICCO. SYURK & SEGAR MANUFACTURER, 36, Main street, Cincinnati.
Tobacco & Snaff' Manufacturer, Mai Would 3 doors below Fifth street, CINCINNATI
Cincinnati-Manufacturers in 1837. 337
L. T. Wells & James Foster,
MATHEMATICAL & PHILOSOPHICAL INSTRUMENT MAKERS, Baker st., Cincinnati.
03-Surveying Instruments and Town Clocks made and repaired at the shortest notice.
JOHN F. COATES, MATTRESS MANUFACTURER, AND GENERAL UPHOLSTERER, Fourth st., third door WV. of Sycamore, Cincinnati.
IRON RAILING MANUFACTORY.
HORTON & BAKER,
FIFTH, NEAR ELM ST., CINCINNATI,
PLAIN & ORNAMENTAL IRON RAILING, Bank Doors, Locks and Vaults. Fire Proof Book Cases. Window Shutters, and all other kinds of Work in the building line-Warranted superior to any done in the Western country, and at Eastern prices. Orders promptly attended to.
STEAM CRACKER BAKERY.
The subscriber informs the public that he has his Steum Cracker Machinery in full operation, and can furnish, at short notice, any amount required. He will keep con- stantly on hand, Boston, Soda, Butter, Water and Sugar Crackers-also. Pilot and Hard Bread, which is inferior to none in the Western country.
OG3- All orders promptly attended to.
SAMUEL CLOON, No. 15, Sycamore st., between Front and Second, CINCINNATI.
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Western Address Directory. .
LETTER XVIII.
1
Madison, (Indiana)-Its location-Population-Public buildings and stores-Pork trade-Rail and other Roads-Prospective greatness- Fertility of the soil, &c .- Cards of Merchants and other business men.
MADISON, (Indiana, ) Feb'y, 1857.
This town, the seat of justice of Jefferson county, is the most populous of any other in the state ; it is situated on the bank of the Ohio river, at an elevation above the highest floods-that of 1852 swept along the basements only of a few buildings on the edge of the lower bank, but no property was damaged by it.
It is only a few years since it has had a nar'e, and now contains a population of about 4,000 inhabitants, 150 of which probably are colored. It is handsomely . laid out on a north bend of the river which is the nearest to the centre of the state-and is in lat. 38° 40' N. and lon. 85° W. The houses are mostly of brick, and new, consequently make a clean appearance, especially when taken in connexion with the wide and straight streets, handsomely graded and paved, or M'Adamized. Here .- - are a court house and jail ; a market house ; 6 houses of public worship-(2 Presbyterians, 1 Baptist, 1 Episco- paliau, 1 Methodist episcopalian, and 1 Methodist pro- testant, or reformed)-a banking house, (branch of the state bank,) and a very tasty structure ; a savings insti- tution ; an insurance office ; 2 iron foundries and a steam engine factory ; a cotton factory ; an oil mill ; a steam grist and saw mill-and a boat yard, at which a number of steamboats have been built. The number of stores,
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Madison, (Indiana, ) in 1837.
at which are sold various articles of merchandize, gene- rally of a mixed character, are about 50-a newspaper printing office (the ' Republican Banner,') and 2 hotels- and a good one is yet wanted. Real estate has advanced rapidly within a few years, both in town and country.
Madison is bounded on the north by a range of culti vated hills at an elevation of perhaps 250 feet above the ordinary level of the river; and from the summits of some of them, a most beautiful view is presented to the eye of the spectator, both up and down the river, for a considerable distance. The land is of the first quality for farming, and the country around is healthy. The number of brick houses is probably 400, and prepara- tions are making for resuming the building of others as soon as the spring season favors. Some of the residences look very desirable. Fifteen thousand hogs were slaugh- tered here this (last) season, averaging nearly 200 lbs. each ; and at the little village of Milton, on the Kentuc- ky side, opposite, 5000 were slaughtered : at this village is also a steam flouring mill.
Madison is the point of termination of the Madison :. and Lafayette rail road, which is in such forwardness as to induce the belief that no delay will be permitted to take place until it is ready for the car, This road is to extend, as by its title is implied, from Madison, to Lafayette, on the Wabash river, the seat of justice of Tippecanoe county, bisecting Indiana in a southeasterly and northwesterly direction, passing through Indianapo. lis, the capital of the state. The length will be some- thing like 146 miles ; and the country traversed of great resources, or susceptible of being made so. The range of hills, or ridge, in the rear of this town, is to be tun- nelled to permit the road to pass through. Considerable
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Western Address Directory.
work has been already performed upon it. The raif road will connect at this point, with the great southern rail road, by which a communication will be opened as well to the south as to the lakes.
At Madison concentrates six important roads, four of which extend through the state-one of them to Vin- cennes, on the Wabash river, 140 miles above its mouth ; another, through Brownstown to Bloomington, in the vi- cinity of which is seated Indiana college, an institution which does credit to the state by which it was establish- ed-chartered in Jan. 1828-this road also continues on to Terre-Haute, at the intersection of the Wabash with the site of the great National Road, distant from Indianapolis 75 miles ;- another road extends to Colum- bus, 44 miles, and thence to Indianapolis, making the total distance from Madison 85 miles ;- another extends to Versailles, the seat of justice of the adjoining county of Ripley ;- another to Mount Sterling ;- besides the river roads to Vevay, and others above, and villages be- low. To Vevay, by the river, the distance is 20 miles ; and to Cincinnati, 100; to Louisville, (below,) 53 miles.
The lands of the county of Jefferson are various : those of the low grounds, on the river and creeks, (says. the Indiana Gazetteer, ) are level, with a loamy soil, mixed with sand ; and these low grounds are generally bounded by high precipitous hills, and in some parts with towering cliffs of limestone. The table lands are . generally rolling, and the soil more clayey. The tim- ber consists of almost all the varieties found in the wes- tern country. The principal streams, in the interior of the country, are Indian Kentucky and Big creeks; the former of which is an excellent mill stream, and has on it several important and profitable establishments.
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Madison, ( Indiana, ) 1837. 3-11
MARSHALL & CUSHING, ATTORNEYS-and COUNSELLORS AT LAW,
Joseph G. Marshall, } Courtland Cushing. S
MADISON.
JAMES M'MILLAN, WHOLESALE AND RETAIL BOOKSELLER & STATIONER, MAIN CROSS ST., MADISON ..
:
JOHN SHEETS, PAPER MANUFACTURER, BY SHEETS & GROVER; Warehouse, corner Main cross and West streets. MADISON.
John Sheets, B. W. Grover. S
Win. H. Webb,
BOOK, JOB, AND NEWSPAPER PRINTER, MAIN CROSS ST., MADISON.
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Western Address Directory.
OFFICERS BRANCH BANK,
MADISON, J. F. D. LANIER, Prest. JOHN SERING, Cashr.
E. G. WHITNEY, Agent
For " Protection Insurance Company," AT HARTFORD, (CONN.,)
Insures against loss or damage by Fire and Water. Office at the Shoe Store of Baker & Whitney, MADISON.
John Woodburn,
MEMBER STATE BOARD INTERNAL IMPROVEMENT. AND COMMISSIONER OF THE M. & L. RAIL ROAD, Office Main Cross street, Mladison.
J. W. HEINES ..
MANUFACTURERS, WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALERS IN Hats, Caps, Furs, Trimmings, &c. Main cross street, Madison.
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Madison, ( Indiana, ) 1837. 343
BAKER & WHITNEY, WHOLESALE DEALERS IN BOOTS AND SHOES, MAIN CROSS ST., MADISON.
JOHN LOWE, Dealer in Boots, Shoes, Hats, Cups, &c. MAIN CROSS ST., MADISON.
J. H. SOUTHWICK,
WHOLESALE AND RETAIL DEALER IN BOOTS AND SHOES, MULBERRY ST., MADISON.
ORR, GORDON & CO. MERCHIANT TAILORS,
Wholesale and Retail Dealers in
Ready-made Clothing, MAIN CROSS STREET, MADISON.
Mulvey & Ford, MERCHANT TAILORS, MULBERRY ST., MADISON.
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Western Address Directory.
Brown & Walden, WHOLESALE DEALERS IN Drugs, Medicines, Paints, Oils, Varnishes, DYE STUFFS, &c. Main cross street, 5 doors east of West st.,
Thos. H. Brown, C. H. Walden.
MADISON.
E. & T. DOAN, Dealers in Groceries and Hardware, Corner of Mulberry and Second sts., MADISON.
WILLIAM M'CLEAN,
Wholesale Grocer, MAIN CROSS STREET, MADISON.
JOSEPH WILSON & CO. Wholesale Dealers in Foreign and Domestic Liquors, &c. MULBERRY STREET, MADISON.
345.
Madison, ( Indiana, ) 1837.
T. POGUE & CO.
Saddle, Harness, and Trunk Manufacturers ; ALSO, DEALERS IN PLATED WARE AND SADDLERS' TRIMMINGS, Main Cross street, Madison.
JOSEPH COWDEN, Wharf Master, AND Commission and Forwarding Agent, MADISON.
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Mitchell & Robertson, Wholesale Dealers in Iron, Nails, Castings, Groceries, &c. AND Commission and Forwarding Merchants, MADISON.
CULVER WOODBURN, Forwarding and Commission Merchant, AND
PRODUCE DEALER, WEST STREET, MADISON.
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Western Address Directory.
. JAMES COCHRAN, WHOLESALE GROCER, and Commission Merchant, MULBERRY STREET, MADISON,
Deals in all kinds of Country Produce, such as Bacon, Lard . Butter, Flour, Beeswax, Ginseng, &c. &c.
BLACKMORE & CO.
DEALERS IN DRY GOODS, GROCERIES & HARDWARE, Corner of Mulberry and Main streets,
MADISON.
D. Blackmore, Jr. ? W. G. Wharton.
J. M. & S. C. BRAMWELL,
Wholesale and Retail Dealers in
FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC DRY GOODS, MULBERRY STREET, MADISON.
Jno. M. Bramwell,
Solon C. Bramwell.
$
Andrew Collins, Dealer in
DRY GOODS, GROCERIES. &c. MAIN CROSS STREET, MADISON.
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Madison, ( Indiana, ) 1837.
317
John Creagh, Dealer in Dry Goods, Groceries, Shoes, PRODUCE, &c. MAIN STREET, MADISON.
S. S. GILLET, DEALER IN DRY GOODS, GROCERIES, HARDWARE, &c. ALSO, Cordage Manufacturer, MAIN CROSS STREET, MADISON.
KING & AYRES, Wholesale Dealers in
British, French, India- AND Domestic Dry Goods, MAIN CROSS STREET, MADISON, Whittington King, Edmund S. Ayres.
KINGS, REID & HE.VDRICKS, WHOLESALE DEALERS IN Foreign and Domestic Dry Goods, MADISON.
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Western Address Directory.
SAVAGE & MACCUBIN, DEALERS IN Dry Goods, Hardware, Groceries, Produce, &.c. MAIN STREET, MADISON.
Wm. H. Savage, Chas. Maccubin.
WM. STAPP & CO. Wholesale Dry Goods Store,
Main cross street, between Mulberry and West streets, MADISON.
Wm. Stapp,
Milton Stapp.
S
SWORMSTED & BENSON, Wholesale and Retail Dealers in Staple and Fancy Dry Goods, MAIN CROSS STREET; MADISON. Lorenzo Swormstedt, 3 William Benson. $
WATLINGTON & HUMPHREYS, DEALERS IN Dry Goods, Queensicare, Hardware, CUTLERY, GROCERIES & PRODUCE, Main street, Madison.
Passage to Louisville, ( ICen. ) 1837. 349
LETTER XIX.
Arrive at Louisville, (Kentucky )-Ilotels -- Pioneers-Early Indian difficulties -- George Rogers Clark-Anecdote-Louisville laid off- Corn Island settled-Fort built at Louisville-Louisville establish- ed-Falls of Ohio, ( Note )-Chutes, or schutes-Impediments to the thrift of the town-Malignant discase-Canal, &c .-- Steamboat Sultana, (Note)-Canal revenue and dividend-Bridge over the Ohio.
LOUISVILLE, (Kentucky, ) Feb. 7th, 1837.
The wintery fetters, which had bound the Ohio river for five or six weeks, were loosened as far up as the mouth of the Great Kenawha, by light rains and humid weather, which commenced the latter part of the last and first of the present month ; and profitting by the circum- stance, I went on board the steamboat Post Boy, at Cia- nati, on the 2d-and notwithstanding there was yet re- maining much drift ice, we reached this place without an impediment to our progress. [Particulars with reference to the river, towns, &c. upon it, will be given in some subsequent letter. ] The passage (subsistence is always included, on these waters, ) was S3 to Madison, (in Indi- ana, ) and $1 from thence-total S4 from Cincinnati to Louisville .- [I omitted to state, that the per diem board at the Cincinnati hotels is from $1.25 to 1.50-and there is no best house among the some 5 or 6 of the most con- spicuous : I have been told I was at the best, and there- fore believe it was so-the dormitories and bed materials, were very comfortable. ]
In this city I have stopped at what is called the Louis- ville hotel. Board per day $1. 50, or $10 per week-at
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Western Address Directory.
the " Galt house," $2 per day, or $12 per week. The mass of the travelling community, belonging to the At- lantic cities, would naturally infer that a traveller in the west " fares sumptuously," where he has to pay such prices. The Jefferson House, corner of Jefferson and Fourth streets, is soon to go into operation ; and its friends, who know, say, that under the direction of Mr. Oliver, it will be a good, and business house.
The archives of Kentucky, it is stated, do not furnish any specific period when this place first attracted a town attention. It was between 1573 and 1800, however, ac- cording to the "latest accounts." The first settlement appears to have been made on Corn Island, the upper of the four, which extend from the lower part of the pre- sent city a.down the falls .- George Rogers Clark, a chivalrous son of Virginia, from Albemarle county, was the great pioneer among the settlers, as he was the great- est military character for planning and adventurous dar- ing, that our country perhaps has ever had in the wes- tern service .*
Clark's first visit to Kentucky was in 1775 ; his second in 1776. Ile was about 25 or 30 years of age. " His appearance, (says Marshall.) was well calculated to at- tract attention ; it was rendered particularly agreeable by the manliness of his deportment, the intelligence of
*It is a matter of surprise that Gen. Clark's civil and military life has never been published, for it would surely be calculated to inspire to like daring deeds, should occasion ever require, such of the rising generation as might read it. And besides. it is due to his fame that such a work should be produced. There are materials and talent suf- ficient in St. Louis, to effect it, if a proper direction would be given to the mind, and it could be brought to exercise a controlling influ- ence over them .- Gen. Clark died at his seat, near this city, in 1817,
351
Early Sketch of Kentucky.
his conversation ; but above all, by the vivacity and bold- ness of his spirit of enterprize, and the determination he expressed of becoming an inhabitant of the country .- He fixed on no particular residence, was much in the woods ; incidentally visiting the forts and ostensible camps ; he cultivated the acquaintance of the people, and acquired an extensive knowledge of the various objects presented to his curiosity or to his inspection."
Kentucky had been for many years the hunting grounds of the Indians, their towns being on the northern side of the Ohio river. The arrival among them of the whites soon changed this " hunting" to that of " bloody ground," for a jealousy was at once excited, that it was the pur- poses of the " pale faces" to dispossess them of their in- heritance, and therefore at the threshold the " red men" were determined to oppose them. It is not unlikely that the Ohio acquired the appelative of the " river of blood,"
. from the circumstance that it must be crossed by the In- dians to reach the " bloody ground," when the tomahawk and scalping knife were to be put into full operation against their common enemy -- besides the many bloody scenes that occurred on the banks of it. But the whites were determined to settle the lands, and among the first who came out was Doct. Walker, from Virginia, in 174 ;. After him, followed Finley, Boone, Knox, Bullitt, the M'Afees, &c. Their habitations were camps. The first cabin, of which any account is given, was erected in 1775, where Washington, in Mason county, now stands .* The same year, the first log cabin was built where Har- rodsburg is located : + the first fort, where Boonesborough
*M. Butler.
tIbid.
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Western Address Directory.
stands, in April, 1775-and during its erection, under Boone, he had two men killed and two others wounded, by the Indians .*
So few in numbers were the pioneers, that sometimes months elapsed before accident would bring any two to- gether-and even then the greatest precaution was ob- served, lest, instead of a white man, it might be an In- dian decoy ; as many stratagems to entrap were practised by these children of nature at that period. An anecdote is related in " Sketches of the West," of a man, nam- ed probably Muldrow, an carly settler in this state, who, having been a long time without seeing the face of a white man, was one day brought to a stand by the bark- ing of a dark. Supposing that an Indian was near, he concealed himself behind a tree. Soon after, the owner following his dog, was led very near to the spot where Muldrow was concealed, by which the latter had a full view of him. The face, hands and feet, which were ex- posed, were of tawny hue ; leggins of dressed deer skins, and on his head was a hat with an elongated crown, the rim being worn off' close to his head. There was but a moment for hesitation. Muldrow drew up his gun to his face to fire upon him ; and the supposed Indian, with his rifle raised, to bring down the object, as soon as perceiv- ed, which had attracted his dog's attention, heard the tick of Muldrow's rifle as he cocked it, and immediately sprung behind a tree also-both were now covered by trees, from behind which each endeavored to get a shot without exposing his person. And now a series of stra- tagems ensued, each seeking to draw the fire of the other
* Butler.
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Early Sketch of Kentucky. 353
-until the stranger, becoming weary of suspense, called out, " Why dont you shoot, you etarnal cowardly var- ment ?" " Shoot yourself, you bloody red-skin," replied the other. " No more a red-skin than yourself." " Are you a white man ?" To-be-sure I am-are you ?"- " Yes-no mistake in me." Whereupon each being un- deceived, they threw down their guns, rushed together with open arms, and took a hearty hug.
I have related the above anecdote to show the charac- ter of the times, and the character of the enemy with whom the pioneers had to compete, during the period while attempts were being made to effect a settlement in. this state. Of the justice or the morality of the pro- ceeding, these do not now constitute questions, but it was pending the period named, that Thomas Bullitt, who was uncle to the first lieutenant-governor of Kentucky, proceeded to the Falls, where, in August, 1773, he laid off the town of Louisville. He likewise surveyed Bul- litt's Lick, in the adjoining county of the same name. t
In the spring of 1778, the before named G. R. Clark, having been promoted to the rank of Colonel, and hav- ing received orders to proceed and reduce the British posts at Kaskaskia, Cahoika and Vincennes, in the now state of Illinois ; the better to mask his design, was ac- companied, with his troops, down the Ohio from the Mo- nongahela, by thirteen families. As a greater surety for their safety, as well as to continue to keep up the ap- pearances of a settlement, those families located them- selves on Corn Island, opposite the lower part of this. city ; and, after clearing off the canes with which it was-
tButler.
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over-run, made their first crop of corn, which circum- stance, it is supposed, suggested the name of the island. Among these bold pioneers, were Capt. James Patton, the first pilot who conducted flat boats over these falls; Richard Chenowith, John Tuel, William Faith, and John McManness. Col. Clark proceeded with his troops against the posts above named, and, as is well known, succeeded in the daring and almost super-human enter- prize of capturing all of them.
The settlers on Corn Island, encouraged, no doubt, by the brilliant success of Col. Clark against their for- midable allied enemies, and pressed, doubtless, by their confined limits, removed, in the spring of 1779, across the chute* from the island, and at the termination of 12th street, on the eastern side of the ravine which en- ters the river at that point, built a small fort ; and the
This term (of French origin) is often used by Ohio navigators : it means sometimes a channel and sometimes a strong current out- running the adjoining water -- over these falls, or rapids, there are three-sometimes spelt schute, (always pronounced so, ) -the north- ern one is between Goose Island and the Indiana shore,and called In -. dian chute ; another is between Rock and Goose Islands, and called the Middle chute ; and the third is the Kentucky chute. In times of low water, these falls (more proper to say rapids, for there is little fall, but an obstruction ) are impassable-they are occasioned by a ledge of rocks which extend quite across the river, and are hardly perceivable in times of high water, unless by the superior velocity of the boat, which descends over them at the rate of from 10 to 13 miles an hour. When the water is low, the rocks are visible. In levelling the descent of the rapids, they have been found to be 22 1-2. feet in two miles, the distance from Bear-grass creek to the foot of the falls. Two miles above the falls, the river is deep, and three- fourths of a mile broad ; and in low water the channel is contracted' to the breadth of 230 yards.
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Foundation of Louisville, (Ken.)
first permament foundation of the present city of Louis- ville, was laid. In May, 1780, the same was established a town, by the name of Louisville.
The first regular fort at Louisville was erected in 1781, but being found inefficient, a larger one was built the next year, and called fort Nelson, in honor of the third republican governor of Virginia.
The growth of Louisville, however, owing to a com- bination of causes, was impeded for several years; and it was not until after a trade was opened with New Or- leans, that it put on a commercial garb. The river here is one mile and twenty-five poles wide-presents no first bank, as in many other places; but by a gently sloping acclivity of about 70 feet in elevation, we reach the ta- ble land. This rich alluvial plain, covered with the most luxuriant herbage, and too level to drain off its su- perabundant moisture, collected ponds, which for many years exposed the inhabitants to violent intermittent fevers.
Although steam boats had been ten years in operation, and Louisville forming the connecting link in the chain between the upper and lower Ohio, its population in 1820 was only 4,012, whereas in 1800 it was 600. In 1822, a malignant disease, which pervaded nearly the whole western country, visited Louisville with greater severity, probably than any other town. This afflicting dispensation, however, appears to have been a kind of " clearing up shower ;" for from that period the place took a start in trade-and all kinds of business, increase of population, wealth, and its progress otherwise, have been onward.
The first object was, to improve the navigation. It had been supposed, that from the rocks and rapid cur -.
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rent, there was a considerable fall in the river at this. place ;* but on taking the level, it was ascertained that the height of the water above the rapids was the same as that below, being 25 feet 86-100.
" In 1804 the legislature of Kentucky incorporated a company to cut a canal around the falls. Nothing ef- fectual, however, beyond surveys, was done, until 1825, when, on the 12th Jan. of that year, the Louisville and . Portland Canal Company was incorporated by an act of the legislature, with a capital of S600,000, in shares of $100 each, with perpetual succession. 3,665 of the shares of the Company are in the hands of individuals, about seventy in number, residing in the following states: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Pennsyl- vania, Maryland, Ohio, Kentucky, and Missouri, and 2,335 shares belong to the government of the U. States.
" The canal was not opened for navigation until De- cember 5th, 1830. When completed, it cost about $750,000. During the year 1831, 406 steam boats, 46 keel boats, and 357 flat boats, measuring 76, 323 tons, passed through the locks, which are about one-fourth the number that would have passed, if all the obstructions. had been removed." 1
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The canal is two miles in length, but too narrow for the increased width of the present class of steamboats; and the consequence is, that those of the larger are obliged to wait a rise in the river to pass down the falls. i
*Sce preceding note.
+The beautiful boat Sultana is reduced to this dilemma, and has waited for the last three months for a suitable state of the current. The Sultana is one of the most splendid steamboats on the western waters : she cost $60,000-measures 410 tons; was built last year by Hartshorn, at Cincinnati, under the superintendance of Captain Tufts, formerly of Lynn,. (Mass.) who is master and part owner; ;
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