126 Frank Carney 



region is easily reached it will make progress slowly. To appre- 

 ciate this fact we need only to recall some section of the continent 

 where it has long been known that great mineral wealth exists, 

 but not being accessible, it has remained unexploited; other 

 areas have very rich soils, but are still fallow, simply because 

 they are not within easy communication. There is no incentive 

 to mine ores, or to grow crops in excess of immediate require- 

 ments, if this excess cannot be marketed. 



Ohio occupies a peculiar position in reference to the Atlantic 

 states on the one hand, and the Mississippi valley on the other. 

 Probably 90 per cent of the present-day commerce between these 

 two sections passes through, or along the margin of, Ohio. Ohio 

 is the backdoor of the more densely populated Atlantic states. 

 For a long time, the Appalachians were a formidable barrier; 

 the sea coast strip was easily colonized and largely exploited 

 before colonists moved across the barrier. When congestion 

 compelled expansion into the interior, natural routes were first 

 utilized. The Mohawk lowland is the lowest pass across this 

 barrier; through it pulsed the lines of emigrants, and later the 

 traffic of stage routes, canals, and railroads. 



Immigration routes. While to-day we regard the Mohawk 

 lowland as the easiest route to and from the northern coast states, 

 it is a curious fact that the earliest colonists into the trans- Appa- 

 lachian region came by more rugged routes. The Cumberland 

 pass, and the river-route from the site of Pittsburgh, were first 

 used. The Mohawk pass was itself so inviting an abode and it 

 opened upon such fertile plains in western New York that settle- 

 ments w^ere established there, before it was necessary to push 

 out farther along Lake Erie. The emigration into northern Ohio 

 is associated rather with political conditions than with this more 

 easy line of traffic. Furthermore, the necessity for expansion 

 arose earlier in the Atlantic states opposite Ohio. The first set- 

 tlers in Ohio, as well as the first explorers, approached the state 

 by the Ohio River. Peoples enter new regions by river valleys, 

 where they exist; the earliest settlements therefore are valley 

 towns. The first clearings for cultivation are usually made on 

 flood plains. With the increase of population, lands are cleared 

 in higher altitudes. This is a matter of convenience; river val- 

 leys afford natural grades for traffic, where it is carried on wheels, 

 and the river itself welcomes boats. But in studying the location 



