[171] Shippingsport—now a portion of the city of Louisville—was incorporated under the name of Campbellville in 1785. The name was changed when James Berthoud became its proprietor in 1805. Shippingsport was an important starting place for traffic west and south from Louisville, until the construction of the Louisville and Portland Canal in 1832.
The Tarascons were brothers who came from France to Kentucky, early in the nineteenth century. They built large mills at Shippingsport (1815-19), and were known as enterprising and public-spirited citizens.—Ed.
CHAPTER XXXIX
Doe run—Blue river—Wheatly’s—Conversation with Wheatly about the Indians—Squire Tobin’s—Horse machinery boat.
May 12.—At six A. M. proceeded down the river, and seven miles from Shippingport, passed Sullivan’s ferry, from whence a road is traced one hundred and twenty miles to Post Vincennes, the capital of Indiana.[172] The current of the Ohio now carried us five miles an hour, passing settlements on the right every mile with a range of picturesque hills behind them.
Twenty-five miles from the falls, we passed Salt river, about eighty yards wide, on the left, with some neat settlements on each side of it, and also on the opposite bank of the Ohio, which latter bank is overhung by some very high rocky precipices. Twelve miles further on the left, we stopped at Doe run to purchase necessaries. This is a small creek, but has a thriving little settlement of half a dozen families on its {237} banks. The price of provisions is here as we had found it generally, viz. Butter 12½ cents per lb., eggs 6¼ cents per dozen, milk 6¼ cents per quart, fowls 12½ cents each, and turkies in proportion to their size from 25 to 50 cents each. At half past six, P. M. we passed Buck creek on the right, five miles from Doe run, and half a mile lower on the same side, we stopped and moored at an excellent landing under a house on the bank.
May 13th, at dawn of day we went on, passing at two miles and a half, on the right, a very remarkable rocky cliff overhanging a cabin and small settlement. We passed Indian creek and two islands in twelve miles more, and then came to Blue river, on the right, fifty yards wide.
The river hills, which are generally a considerable distance behind the banks below Louisville, now approached quite close on each side.
On each side of Blue river is a settlement, the uppermost one three years old, but very little advanced, has a large family of children and their mother almost naked. Nothing apparently flourishing except a large garden of onions, for a few of which with a pound or two of Indian meal to make leaven, the woman would fix no price, but thinking herself badly paid with a quarter of a dollar, I gave her an eighth more to satisfy her. The lower settlement was began two years ago by one Thomas Davidson, from Carlisle, in Pennsylvania, and must become a fine property if Mr. Harrison, the present governour of Indiana, succeeds in establishing, according to his intentions, a ship yard on Blue river, which is a most eligible situation for it. He has already erected a grist and saw mill about eight miles up it,[173] where it is joined by a rivulet, which rising suddenly from a spring in a prairie seventeen miles above the mill, tinges the water from its source to its discharge into the Ohio with a clear blue colour, which however {238} does not effect its goodness, it being of an excellent quality.
Blue river itself is navigable for batteaux forty miles.