An Economic Revolution the U.S. Government Made Possible
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Sept. 5 (Bloomberg) -- When the New Orleans chugged intothe city for which it was named on Jan. 10, 1812, it madehistory as the first steam-powered vessel to travel the westernwaters of the U.S. At the time, few people thought it wouldtouch off a commercial revolution.
Within 10 years, however, western-river steamboats carriedtwice as much freight in two weeks as had gone upriver in all of1811. The Mississippi River pulsated with commerce. People andgoods moved with relative ease between Pittsburgh, St. Paul, St.Louis, New Orleans and even Montana.