Cruising the Ohio River
by Mary Jo
September was cruise time! As with our April cruise of the Chesapeake Bay, we 
an American Cruise Lines small ship cruise. Since ACL cruises only in American waters, it was much easier and less likely to be canceled than flying to Europe at a time when border restrictions are constantly changing. We decided on a cruise of the Ohio River, starting from Pittsburgh and ending in St. Louis. It would be simple to get to and from, and more important, it was a part of the US that we didn't know well, and which has masses of history.
The Ohio River was the southern border of a vast tract of wilderness that had been ceded to the US by Great Britain in the 1783 Treaty of Paris that ended the American War of Independence. The Northwest Territory doubled the size 
the young United States and covered all or part of what would become six states, but at the time, it was entirely undeveloped: no towns, no farms, no roads, only a handful of small forts.