While road building in the East gives a clear picture of the rise
and growth of commerce and trade in that section, it is to the
rivers of the trans-Alleghany country that we must look for a
corresponding picture in this early period
While road building in the East gives a clear picture of the rise
and growth of commerce and trade in that section, it is to the
rivers of the trans-Alleghany country that we must look for a
corresponding picture in this early period. The canoe and pirogue
could handle the packs and kegs brought westward by the files of
Indian ponies; but the heavy loads of the Conestoga wagons
demanded stancher craft. The flatboat and barge therefore served
the West and its commerce as the Conestoga and turnpike served
the East.
