With the completion of the Miami and Erie Canal in 1845, a steamboat could start on the Great Lakes and voyage through to the Gulf of Mexico, without ever touching an ocean. Along the way was Cincinnati, which emerged as a shipping hub on the banks of the Ohio River. Although the prevalence of railroads in the late 1800s slowed the city�s growth, water-based commerce proved resilient to the downturn of the Great Depression and helped the city weather the early 1930s.
