[gtd-net] the western pilot

From: Patrick McHaffie <patrickmchaffie@xxxxxxxxx>
To: gtd-net@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Sat, 8 Jan 2022 20:16:21 -0600

my winter reading list includes a book by samuel cumings, the western
pilot, published in 1829 in cincinnati. i'm enjoying the hell out of it. it
is available for download in the internet archive:

https://archive.org/details/westernpilotcont00cumi/page/n5/mode/2up?q=the+western+pilot

the description from the frontispiece tells it all:

"The western pilot, containing charts of the Ohio River, and of the
Mississippi from the mouth of the Missouri to the Gulf of Mexico,
accompanied with directions for navigating the same, and a gazetteer, or
description of the town on their banks, tributary streams, etc. .."

we've all spent loads of time on or about both sides of this amazing
stream. here's a snip from the first few pages:

''There is no wonder that the way of life which the boatmen lead, in turn
extremely indolent, and extremely laborious; for days together requiring
little or no effort, and attended with no danger, and then on a sudden,
laborious and hazardous beyond Atlantic navigation; generally plentiful as
it respects food, and always so as it regards whiskey, should always have
seductions that prove irresistable to the young people that live near the
banks of the river. The boats float by their dwellings on beautiful spring
mornings, when the verdant forest, the mild and delicious temperature of
the air, the delightful azure of the sky of this country, the fine bottom
on the one hand, and the romantic bluff on the other, the broad and smooth
stream rolling calmly down the forest, and floating the boat gently
forward, all these circumstances harmonize in the excited youthful
imagination. The boatmen are dancing to the violin on the deck of their
boat. They scatter their wit among the girls on the shore who come down to
the water's edge to see the pageant pass. The boat glides on until it
disappears behind a point of wood. At this moment perhaps, the bugle, with
which all the boats are provided, strikes up its note in the distance over
the water. These scenes, and these notes, echoing from the bluffs of tire
beautiful Ohio, have a charm for the imagination, which,although I have
heard a thousand times repeated, and at all hours,andin all positions, is
even to me always new, and alwaye delightful. No wonder that the young, who
are reared in these remote regions, with that restless curiosity which is
fostered by solitude and silence, who witness scenes like this so
frequently, no wonder that the severe and unremitting labors of
agriculture, performed directly in the view of such scenes, should become
tasteless and irksome."

and a description of the city of louisville:

This town is situated just below the mouth of Beargrass creek,
and a few yards above the Falls It stands on a spacious sloping
plain, and three principal streets run parallel with the river. Main
street is nearly a mile long, and is very compactly built. The
town contains probably about 7000 inhabitants. In a commercia
point of view, it is far the most important town in the State ol
Kentucky. The large steam boats, that run between this town
and New Orleans, are never able to ascend the falls except in
high stages of water. Their cargoes are obliged to be dischargee
at Shipingport at the foot of the falls, and transported by land to
Louisville; from whence they are distributed to their points of des-
tination. The merchants of Louisville are, therefore, from neces-
sity the factors for the important business, which concentrates
here. The mouth of Beargrass affords an excellent harbour for
the steam boats and river craft. It is the seat of justice for
Jefferson County, which is one of the most fertile and best set-
tled in the State. The town was formerly reputed unhealthy
and was subject, in t'."j summer and autumn, to the endemic
diseases of the country, owing to the stagnant waters in the neigh-
borhood. The ponds and marshes have been drained, and the
health of the town has, in eonsequence, improved, and is now
ne'arly as healthy as any town on the river.

here's a map of louisville from the book:

[image: image.png]

enjoy!

sent from my personal gmail account

patrick williams mchaffie
<https://las.depaul.edu/academics/geography/faculty/Pages/patrick-mchaffie.aspx>,
professor emeritus, GISP <http://www.gisci.org/>
department of geography
<http://las.depaul.edu/academics/geography/Pages/default.aspx>
depaul university
chicago, il 60614

LinkedIn Profile <https://www.linkedin.com/in/pmchaffie>

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