The Paths of Inland Commerce Part 6

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

The history of the early phase of American transportation is dealt with in three general works. John Luther Ringwalt's "Development of Transportation Systems in the United States" (1888) is a reliable summary of the general subject at the time. Archer B. Hulbert's "Historic Highways of America," 16 vols. (1902-1905), is a collection of monographs of varying quality written with youthful enthusiasm by the author, who traversed in good part the main pioneer roads and ca.n.a.ls of the eastern portion of the United States; Indian trails, portage paths, the military roads of the Old French War period, the Ohio River as a pathway of migration, the c.u.mberland Road, and three of the ca.n.a.ls which played a part in the western movement, form the subject of the more valuable volumes. The temptation of a writer on transportation to wander from his subject is ill.u.s.trated in this work, as it is ill.u.s.trated afresh in Seymour Dunbar's "A History of Travel in America," 4 vols. (1915). The reader will take great pleasure in this magnificently ill.u.s.trated work, which, in completer fas.h.i.+on than it has ever been attempted, gives a readable running story of the whole subject for the whole country, despite detours, which some will make around the many pages devoted to Indian relations.

For almost every phase of the general topic books, monographs, pamphlets, and articles are to be found in the corners of any great library, ranging in character from such productions as William F. Ganong's "A Monograph of Historic Sites in the Province of New Brunswick" ("Proceedings and Transactions" of the Royal Society of Canada, Second Series, vol. V, 1899) which treats of early travel in New England and Canada, or St. George L. Sioussat's "Highway Legislation in Maryland and its Influence on the Economic Development of the State" ("Maryland Geological Survey," III, 1899) treating of colonial road making and legislation thereon, or Elbert J. Benton's "The Wabash Trade Route in the Development of the Old Northwest" ("Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science," vol. XXI, 1903) and Julius Winden's "The Influence of the Erie Ca.n.a.l upon the Population along its Course" (University of Wisconsin, 1901), which treat of the economic and political influence of the opening of inland water routes, to volumes of a more popular character such as Francis W. Halsey's "The Old New York Frontier" (1901), Frank H. Severance's "Old Trails on the Niagara Frontier" (1903) for the North, and Charles A. Hanna's "The Wilderness Trail", 2 vols. (1911), and Thomas Speed's "The Wilderness Road" ("The Filson Club Publications," vol. II, 1886) for Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Kentucky. The value of Hanna's work deserves special mention.

For the early phases of inland navigation John Pickell's "A New Chapter in the Early Life of Was.h.i.+ngton" (1856), is an excellent work of the old-fas.h.i.+oned type, while in Herbert B. Adams's "Maryland's Influence upon Land Cessions to the United States" ("Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science, Third Series," I, 1885) a master-hand pays Was.h.i.+ngton his due for originating plans of trans-Alleghany solidarity; this likewise is the theme of Archer B. Hulbert's "Was.h.i.+ngton and the West" (1905) wherein is printed Was.h.i.+ngton's "Diary of September, 1784," containing the first and unexpurgated draft of his cla.s.sic letter to Harrison of that year. The publications of the various societies for internal improvement and state boards of control and a few books, such as Turner Camac's "Facts and Arguments Respecting the Great Utility of an Extensive Plan of Inland Navigation in America" (1805), give the student distinct impressions of the difficulties and the ideals of the first great American promoters of inland commerce. Elkanah Watson's "History of the... Western Ca.n.a.ls in the State of New York" (1820), despite inaccuracies due to lapses of memory, should be specially remarked.

For the rise and progress of turnpike building one must remember W. Kingsford's "History, Structure, and Statistics of Plank Roads" (1852), a reliable book by a careful writer. The c.u.mberland (National) Road has its political influence carefully adjudged by Jeremiah S. Young in "A Political and Const.i.tutional Study of the c.u.mberland Road" (1904), while the social and personal side is interestingly treated in county history style in Thomas B. Searight's "The Old Pike" (1894). Motorists will appreciate Robert Bruce's "The National Road" (1916), handsomely ill.u.s.trated and containing forty-odd sectional maps.

The best life of Fulton is H. W. d.i.c.kinson's "Robert Fulton, Engineer and Artist: His Life and Works" (1913), while in Alice Crary Sutcliffe's "Robert Fulton and the 'Clermont'" (1909), the more intimate picture of a family biography is given. For the controversy concerning the Fulton-Livingston monopoly, note W. A. Duer's "A Course of Lectures on Const.i.tutional Jurisprudence" and his pamphlets addressed to Cadwallader D. Colden. The life of that stranger to success, the forlorn John Fitch, was written sympathetically and after a.s.siduous research by Thompson Westcott in his "Life of John Fitch the Inventor of the Steamboat" (1858). For the pamphlet war between Fitch and Rumsey see Allibone's Dictionary.

The Great Lakes have not been adequately treated. E. Channing and M. F. Lansing's "The Story of the Great Lakes" (1909) is reliable but deals very largely with the routine history covered by the works of Parkman. J. O. Curwood's "The Great Lakes" (1909) is stereotyped in its scope but has certain chapters of interest to students of commercial development, as has also "The Story of the Great Lakes." The vast bulk of material of value on the subject lies in the publications of the New York, Buffalo, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Chicago Historical Societies, whose lists should be consulted. These publications also give much data on the Mississippi River and western commercial development. S. L. Clemens's "Life on the Mississippi" (in his "Writings," vol. IX,1869-1909) is invaluable for its graphic pictures of steamboating in the heyday of river traffic. A. B. Hulbert's "Waterways of Western Expansion" ("Historic Highways," vol. IX, 1903) and "The Ohio River" (1906) give chapters on commerce and transportation. For the beginnings of traffic into the Far West, H. Inman's "The Old Santa Fe Trail" (1897) and "The Great Salt Lake Trail" (1914) may be consulted, together with the publications of the various state historical societies of the trans-Mississippi States.

Various bibliographies on this general subject have been issued by the Library of Congress. Seymour Dunbar gives a good bibliography in his "A History of Travel in America," 4 vols. (1915). The student will find quant.i.ties of material in books of travel, in which connection he would do well to consult Solon J. Buck's "Travel and Description, 1765-1865" ("Illinois State Historical Library Collections," vol. IX, 1914).