Steamboats

• 
• 7/3/2020
  

  Of Steamboats and Fireworks: The Great Mississippi River Race of 1870

  by Eric Simanek

  On the 4th of July of 1870, a 1,200 mile race between two steamboats on the Mississippi River was decided. The race attracted global interest. Reporters wrote about it. Gamblers wagered on it. People gathered and cheered for it.