Why So Few Americans Live Along The Mississippi River, Especially In The South

[@silverjohn6037]

Another historical consideration along the southern Mississippi would have been the prevalence of mosquito born diseases like malaria, Yellow Fever, etc. People didn't really understand why they were more likely to get sick in those areas but did understand that it was unhealthy land.

[@JesusFriedChrist]

“Yellow Fever” is an outdated term. We say “Asian American Fever” now.

[@kam2894]

@@JesusFriedChrist lmao

[@ReubyD118]

@@JesusFriedChrist Racist comment be racist... it's called that cuz you go jaundice and turn yellow...

[@sterlingpratt5802]

Yeah. MS Delta native here. You couldn’t even really settle the Delta until the 20th century, and none of the towns really got going until after the Civil War. Today, the whole area is a massive feat of engineering with dams, levees, and artificial banks to try and contain the flow.

[@jKLa]

According to this video, Memphis, Tennessee with a metro population oround 1.3 miillion and close to 600,000 in the city itself, and New Orleans with a 1.2 million metro are NOT a major US cities...

[@hgbugalou]

As someone who lives near Memphis I don't have to even watch to tell you its flooding. The river goes above its flood plain down here almost every single year, sometimes more than once. Its the levee system and flood control reservoirs of tributaries the corp of engineers maintains that keeps it from being a major disaster every year. That said in 2011 it came just a couple of feet from over topping those levees. I was there at ground zero for work and it was some pretty wild scenes. I uploaded a video of it on here.

[@perfectallycromulent]

the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers have worse flooding than the MIssissippi, and there are still hundreds of millions of people living along them.

[@Marc-King777]

Yeah I don't live anywhere near the Mississippi and not even in a state that borders it, but even I knew that it was due to flooding (and the unpredictable shifting of the river channel).

[@areguapiri]

Rising waters is not a "disaster". It's a natural, regular occurrence.

[@henrydemonfreid1985]

@@areguapiri thank you. it's humans who are the disaster!

[@UserName-ts3sp]

@@areguapirii mean it can lead to serious damages and death, so yeah flooding can absolutely be a disaster.

[@ElicBehexan]

I saw this topic and said, to myself since nobody else is here, 'Easy, flooding."

[@GothBatty]

It’s not that bad there’s no basements you build according to the land.

[@ElicBehexan]

@@GothBatty well, we don't normally have basements where I'm from, but it isn't because of flooding... it is because it costs too much to excavate through the limestone that is between 6 inches to 3 feet below the ground level in most of town. Not by the river, but until they finally succeeded in taming it, flooding was a bit of a problem. Oh, and for most of the 7 years between 2 and 9 I lived in a house where there had only been a couple of inches until they came in and put down 4 inches of top soil.

[@paulleavitt9550]

I’m no expert on this topic but I immediately thought the area surrounding the Mississippi River is largely a flood plain

[@chrisp308]

It's because of the new Madrid earthquakes

[@324bear]

@@ElicBehexan I would like a little more detail... I don't need your address, just the state... In my mind limestone is more of a northern area... But I'm not a geologist and I didn't stay in a Holiday Inn last night 🤣😂

[@daveharrison84]

Americans compared it to the Nile because it's a long river that supports an entire country. That's why it has cities named Memphis and Cairo.

[@ghost21501]

You just blew my mind. I never put 2 and 2 together.

[@AlGore2028]

my brain Right now 🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯🤯

[@UseByDate-Expired]

Southern Illinois is known as Little Egypt

[@dakf660]

Never knew that

[@andrewburcham4826]

That’s not entirely accurate. Southern Illinois is called “Little Egypt,” because the joining of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers closely resembles the Nile delta. The names of the cities, then grew from that.

[@dennisenright9347]

The city of Winnipeg is built at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers. The area was a meeting place for Native populations for thousands of years, but they never built a permanent city there. When European explorers showed up, they asked what the forty foot high wooden pole that had been erected there meant. The Indians told them that marked the height of spring flooding in bad years, and that was the reason that there was no permanent Native settlement there. Did European settlers listen? No. That is the reason that there is a flood diversion ditch east of the city that required more earthmoving than the Panama canal.

[@ytgytgy]

Totally same in Fargo, also dead in the middle of the red river floodplain. Way to go colonizers!

[@tomthx5804]

Why the hell should they listen to savages who were living in the stone age?. Obviously people settled the Winnipeg area quite successfully. They knew how to control rivers. What a goof you are.

[@blobblorg6541]

I think it actually moved less cubic meters of earth than the Panama Canal, but more than the Suez Canal. This was the second largest earthmoving project in modern human history.

[@noahstevens1886]

​@@blobblorg6541 I appreciate that you qualified modern history. Ancient people did all kinds of stuff.

[@virginiaoflaherty2983]

White men, bless their hearts.

[@Glenintheden]

The advantage Minneapolis and St Paul and surrounding suburbs have is that, while they do have issues with regular flooding, the vast majority of their population and businesses exist high atop bluffs over the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers. Those bluffs were carved out by massive flooding at the end of the last ice age.

[@lewis7315]

No Ice Age, Just Noah's flood :)>

[@ilikespaghetti4458]

​@@lewis7315 ...

[@ivywoodxrecords]

That, is overly simplistic, and really only South-West Minneapolis and St. Paul proper can say that is true. Ok maybe Burnsville parts of Bloomington and definitely Edina and alright there are southern suburbs over by St Paul that yes are on high ground. But most of the west suburbs are on a rolling plain, the north suburbs the same and east toward White Bear Lake/Oakdale are the same. Maybe 25% - 35% of the area is as you say the rest is glaciated or at least north of the river and to the west.

[@ivywoodxrecords]

For example, Maple Grove. Minnetonka. Anoka. Not until you get down towards Shakopee on that side do you hit any real elevation changes that you could call bluffs, and really the features you are talking about are in and around south St Paul and as I said Eagan/Edina/Ft Snelling

[@Bryan-od7nv]

@@ivywoodxrecords When I lived in the Twin Cities I seem to remember the Minnesota River being more of a flooding issue than the Mississippi or St. Croix ever were.

[@krisstarring]

I grew up in Memphis. I'm telling you, the Lower Mississippi area is one of the most deprived areas of the country. But aside from the poverty and infamous crime that results from said poverty, it also gets really hot in the summer thanks to the humidity being near a large river carrying most of the rainfall in North America in the South. And the mosquitos are terrible are a result. Ugh. But Memphis isn't so far south so it also gets really cold and breezy in the wintertime thanks to the flat landscape which is also made worse by the humidity. Wet cold is worse than dry cold. Oh, and the spring time, it's tornado season because it's smack dab in middle America, aka Tornado Alley. It's just not a pleasant place to live. I have a lot of good memories growing up there, but I have to admit it. it's a challenging place to live. No wonder the blues found a home there. Memphis was at least blessed with a bluff (hence its nickname the "Bluff City") that shielded it from flooding unlike other cities on the Lower Mississippi like Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Great video though. Also, just a note, Cairo, Illinois isn't pronounced like the city in Egypt, it is "CAY-ro." ;-) Cairo, IL is an interesting town historically being at the intersection of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers but a very sad place as well. It's virtually a ghost town now but declined over the decreasing importance of river transportation vs. the railroad and highways plus racial tensions and strife.

[@JTA1961]

Excellent statement regarding the blues

[@James-bs8bd]

Facts. Let them know

[@GeraldM_inNC]

The Confederates didn't take the Union's attempt to conquer Vicksburg seriously. They assumed the Union army would not be able to deal with the heat, humidity and malaria.

[@PastelSkies-n3v]

Dry cold may seem better, until one realizes how much their skin suffers if they don't stay on top of moisturizing their skin and humidifying the air. The Rocky Mountains suffer the greatest from this phenoma thanks to this plus high elevation.

[@manifeststation5354]

No one is suffering in Colorado compared to Mississippi be foreal 😂

[@GetThemLyrics]

I work on a towboat. We regularly travel the lower Mississippi River. This man is correct about the population. Basically nothing but trees, trees, and more trees.

[@ericolens3]

you forgot to mention the trees.

[@tinyfrog919]

@@ericolens3 😂

[@jamesalexander5623]

Tree-mendous Comment!

[@areguapiri]

Factories, factories, and factories. Dams, dams, and dams.

[@GetThemLyrics]

There are no Dams on the Lower. But there are a few docks that we stop at to load and unload product.@@areguapiri

[@ericpierce3660]

You'd think Cairo, Illinois would be pronounced Kai-roh like you did, but the locals actually pronounce it Kay-roh.

[@deafleppard1812]

Same with Cairo New York

[@deafleppard1812]

We also have Milan New York. We pronounce it as “my lan” with the A sounding like an A in Anne.

[@matthewclark5879]

Geoff rarely does homework on a local scale

[@JTA1961]

Syruptishisly

[@TheLemon333]

Mark Twain's hometown

[@Steve-318]

Little known fact, the widest navigable part of the Mississippi River is Lake Pepin at two miles wide.

[@dennislodermeier1741]

thanks, Cliffy

[@MACHOMANRANDYSAVAGE2211]

​@@dennislodermeier1741who are 3 people who have never been in my mother's kitchen

[@capps2015]

Its a mile wide plus from Cairo down.

[@drewo6388]

Just a note: Cairo, Illinois is actually pronounced like "Cay-roh." I always got it wrong too (pronouncing it like Cairo, Egypt) until a local told me how they pronounced it in the region.

[@GenericUsername1388]

Here in South Africa we have a town called Alabama (It was named after CSS Alabama, a War Vessel from the US) but it's pronounced totally different to the state. My friend, a local from there told me it's pronounced "Ala-baah-ma" 😂

[@antonboldsword3770]

The bridge going from Missouri to Cairo, IL, then to Kentucky is insane...

[@nothat0therguy992]

The Mississippi is hard to tame, she takes what she wants. I recall seeing at least a few then boomtown getting devastated by flooding, with Cairo being one of the best known examples of that

[@missourimongoose8858]

I didn't know that but I drove through Cairo a few weeks ago and man it looks like 2 out of 3 buildings there are abandoned

[@nothat0therguy992]

@@missourimongoose8858 Sad thing is Flooding was just the start of Cairo's problems, it's truly one of the most unlucky cities in America. Between Flooding, the reduction of shipping by water, getting bypassed by the highway system, de-industrialization, white flight and general isolation Cairo has faced problem after problem creating such a bleak outlook for the town

[@bemhibbits4157]

I grew up in Minneapolis and live in St Paul today. Essentially right on the Ole Miss near downtown. I love everything the river brings and how our metro area makes use of it.

[@stakknation123]

My first thought was aren't St.Lous, Memphis and New Orleans fairly large cities? Maybe he means just south of Memphis

[@jonnyfendi2003]

Yes and high crime rates.

[@glennrishton5679]

Technically the river is divided into two areas The Upper Mississippi begins at Cairo IL going to the headwaters at Lake Itasca in Minnesota. The Lower River begins at Cairo and down river to the Head of the Passes just below Venice LA. Then there is the Southwest Pass some 21.8 miles to the Gulf which is transited by ships and vessels with a deeper draft. So after my long answer St Louis is part of the northers area.

[@chuckbarnes225]

@stakknation123 New Orleans, far from a large city, very, very small city population is 300 thousand people. I'm just saying

[@SS-yj2le]

Northern areas also have access to the port of Chicago which was developed for its connection between the Mississippi drainage area and the New York region. The southern area is also depopulated due to the land being very unstable. A lot of that area is swampland with nothing to handle large structures very well without intense development.

[@NewReflections-pw8xm]

Growing up in Harahan, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans, I could hit the River with a rock. It was an incredible place to be a kid. Watching the ships go by, etc.

[@1manarmy889]

I’m from Louisiana in an area along the river, it’s industrial use keeps people away, a lot of chemical and oil refineries, the stretch from Baton Rouge and past New Orleans is called “cancer ally”

[@glennrishton5679]

I've caught some really nice catfish around the Grain elevators but sure as hell not going to eat them, no telling what the chemical plants may have added to the water.

[@dalegoff219]

Yep. I'm in one of those plants daily, across the river from BR. They're an economic boon for the region, but at what cost?

[@robynlovesroses]

You completely left out a half a million people living in the Quad Cities. The Quad Cities straddles the river; half in Iowa and half in Illinois. The Cities have survived majored flooding since the beginning. It would have been worth mentioning how they handle development and flood management.

[@andrewolson1157]

I also thought it would have been interesting to note that Illinois original state capital, Kaskaskia, is now fully on the wrong side of the river. Would have fit well into the segment on political borders at the end.

[@Marc-King777]

I thought I was the only one that felt like some medium-sized cities were missing on the northern portion of the river. Just couldn't put my finger on it. But you did. LOL

[@irelandishsac13]

Don't forget about the Government Bridge that connects Rock Island Arsenal to Illinois and Iowa.

[@UseByDate-Expired]

@@andrewolson1157 part of Kentucky can only be reached through Missouri, and other parts shift between Kentucky and IL

[@mostlyguesses8385]

Hmm

[@andz1995]

I think it’d be cool to see a video on why the Phoenix metro has grown to be so much larger than Tucson or Las Vegas

[@highway2heaven91]

Why did it grow larger? That’s a good question.

[@perfectallycromulent]

only one of those cities is the capital of a state that's easy to move to from LA.

[@really...8359]

vegas for a long time was only hospitality - which doesn’t pay the greatest. and also until recently people didn’t associate vegas with raising a family, they associated it with crime and casinos - not until about the 90s did people start hearing of summerlin, henderson, and spring valley as “great suburbs” tucson is a college town, and has the same vibe as a place like jackson mississippi- it’s the west coast version of a southern city. it’s hot, not much to do. phoenix - financial/tech hub, hub for several airlines, it pitched itself to snowbirds the same can be said about why most texas cities are booming but el paso hasn’t moved an inch. . .

[@PhatRobsOils]

LOL Houston is out of control....@@julm7744

[@Marc-King777]

​@@julm7744 San Antonio isn't growing much? What? That's news to me and I live in Texas. As with most other major cities in the US since the pandemic, San Antonio proper's growth has slowed down a bit. But, it hasn't declined like some major cities have during this period. And---even with the slow down in growth, San Antonio still ranked third in overall growth betwen July 2021 and July 2022 according to the latest US Census. Only Forth Worth, TX and Phoenix, AZ, respectively, had larger numerical growth during that year. In addition, with San Antonio and Austin's metro areas merging due to their close proximity, together, they are expected to grow from 5.2 million in 2023 to 8.3 million by 2050. The growth in these two areas (and throughout the rest of the Texas Triangle) is already a major headache for the state in terms of housing and transportation infrastructure. By the way, I'm not sure where you're getting your facts about Texas cities, but a lot of major to medium-sized cities in Texs have been booming since the mid 20th century and not just Austin and Dallas, but also includes Fort Worth, Houston, Lubbock, El Paso (yes, El Paso AND Lubbock), Brownsville, Killeen, Bryan-College Station, Tyler, Laredo, Midland, etc. Of course, being as large of a state as Texas is, not all major to medium cities have seen explosive growth. That or either they have slowed down (or declined) over the past couple of decades. Such as cities like Corpus Christi, Beaumont, Waco, Wichita Falls, Amarillo, etc.

[@hereticalgames3695]

Have you ever heard of the Jones Act? It was kinda the reason we don’t do cabotage in the US which hurts specifically the southern Mississippi River valley and the Ohio River valley.

[@TheBaldr]

In 1803 the Louisiana Purchase there were 1000 people living in the former Spanish village of New Madrid, Missouri. Not only floods, but 1000 earthquakes up to 8.0M between 1811-1812. 220 years later the population has only doubled.

[@lannybrasher2452]

I live in Natchez, Mississippi. The oldest settlement on the Mississippi river. Pretty cool small town. More of a retirement town now. Use to be a very rich town. Now not so much. Will never understand how anyone lived here before the invention of air conditioning. Don't really have to worry about flooding seeing how the majority of the town sits on a 200 ft bluff.

[@Blackdiamondprod.]

You keep saying that there are “No major cities” off the southern shores of the Mississippi, but then you refer to St. Louis as a major city. St. Louis has 293,000 residents, while New Orleans (on the shores of the southern Mississippi) has 377,000 residents and Memphis has 630,000 residents. That’s very inconsistent.

[@shoehorse6657]

Could you do a video on the New Madrid earthquake zone? I’ve read it affected the Mississippi river’s course. You do such great videos that it would be interesting to get your take on that topic!

[@antonleimbach648]

Much of this has to do with slave vs free states. The south focused on cotton and other agricultural crops while the north industrialized. That’s why the south is still behind when it comes to education, infrastructure, and will be for the foreseeable future.

[@keefmeister77]

I moved away from New Orleans because of the crime. The river and flooding had nothing to do with it. Never had water in any house I ever lived in (over 60 years) and I mostly lived in Gretna which is close to the river. There was a time when New Orleans was the most populated city in the south and I'm pretty sure the river was still there.

[@jevinday]

That was really interesting Geoff. I never really considered that there are so few major population centers along the Mississippi compared to other rivers

[@realmless4193]

"No major US cities" except Memphis and New Orleans.

[@RamblingOmarr]

And St. Louis, And Minneapolis

[@WhackaWhacka]

@@RamblingOmarr He said the southern half. Still a major error to overlook Memphis and New Orleans.

[@StevenHughes-hr5hp]

​@@WhackaWhacka Saint Louis counts as the southern part too. That is where the Missouri and the Mississippi branch off. North of there is really the upper Mississippi.

[@WhackaWhacka]

@@StevenHughes-hr5hp The "southern half" would start at Ste. Genevieve, just like the red line that pops up. The divide between upper and lower is at Cairo.

[@revinhatol]

1:33 With parts of Alberta and Saskatchewan

[@karladoesstuff]

I'm surprised you didn't mention the New Madrid fault.

[@jonathanbowers8964]

The New Madrid Fault is kind of the "one hit wonder" of the geology world because it had a single massive earthquake in the 1810s (before much of the region was intensively colonized) and nothing of note since. While it will likely have another earthquake sometime in the future, it isn't enough to deter human settlement. Japan and Chile both have larger and more frequent earthquakes (with Japan and Chile being the Taylor Swift and Beyonce of the Earthquake world respectfully) and are more densely populated than the New Madrid fault region. The real reason that area is sparsely settled can be taken from its local name "The Bottoms" as in the frequent floods that ravage that part of the Mississippi River System.

[@ericpierce3660]

@@jonathanbowers8964 Respectively. Damn autocorrect.

[@Wayne_Wanders]

@@jonathanbowers8964I was from a village about 10 miles north of new Madrid that don’t exist no more due to high river and blowing the levee. If you want to rebuild and live out there than insurance will only cover you if u build on stilts. You’re very correct

[@ulfricstormcloak5080]

You should do an in-depth video about the old river control structure along the Mississippi which keeps the river from diverting to the Atchafalaya river. If it wasn’t for human intervention the Mississippi would literally change course. The book “The Control of Nature” goes in depth about this topic along with more ways humans try to control the Mississippi River

[@glennrishton5679]

That is a great book. John McPhee writes some very fascinating books on a variety of subjects. Imagine an entire book on oranges or birch bark canoes.

[@dalegoff219]

And that actually diverts about 25% of the Mississippi's flow into the Atchafalaya River and Basin. Without the ORCS being in place, New Orleans would STILL be devastated from Katrina. The Basin bridge is probably one of my favorite stretches of roadI've driven.

[@chizorama]

I still remember the floods of 93(?), drove through St Louis, months after the worst of it, & the water was still up to the 2nd stories of the factories along the river. Kinda blew my mind as a young adult.

[@Ad-qt8lx]

Im from Mississippi, the ms delta (or the ms-yazoo alluvial plain). The delta is the poorest region of the poorest state. Lots of antebellum mansions there were built on mounds bc of the flooding. And the few ppl that can afford a home much less to build one there, build theirs on hills and mounds too. better than getting out sandbags every year. When i was lil we lived not 400 yrds away from the yazoo. We moved down river closer to Jackson so my dad could get a better job. But overall in Mississippi and along the ms river theres no economic opportunities, schools suck, nothing to do (paradise if u love to hunt & fish), mosquitos, humid climate, its the bible belt & conservative (if those r personally a problem), theres tornadoes, flooding and/or hurricanes.

[@mmmitchell6887]

I grew up on the Mississippi camping and swimming and fishing and boating. It really was a blessing. And particularly the Minnesota Wisconsin border. Shout out to all my Midwestern folks: you really are friendly and beautiful

[@Abhishek-iu5ju]

Rechel

[@zachvayo8970]

Great video! Another factor might be the construction of railroads (and later highways) that reduce the necessity of being on a major river for trade. Chicago is probably the best example of a railroad-era metropolis in the US, and notably right on the doorstep of the Mississippi basin without actually being on the river. I wonder if you could argue that Houston does something similar for the lower Mississippi basin?

[@louieharperspring]

I forgot Minneapolis metro had almost 4 million people. Proud to be the leading city on the Mississippi

[@JTA1961]

You can keep your winters

[@paulleavitt9550]

Also the setting for The Mary Tyler Moore show

[@nickpavia9021]

They are really stretching the definition of what is considered part of the "metro" when they say it has a population of 4 million

[@louieharperspring]

literally, the main city has 800k.@@nickpavia9021

[@Compucles]

@@nickpavia9021 That's not too far off. The Minneapoilis-St. Paul MSA has about 3.7 million people, while the St. Louis MSA has about 2.8 million.

[@StevenHughes-hr5hp]

New Orleans, Memphis and Saint Louis are the major urban areas. All three of them are in the southern Mississippi. After it becomes a small tribitary of the larger Missouri River it sort of fades into insignificance.

[@raymondmartin6737]

My wife and I were guests at the Lewis and Clark reenactment 20 years ago near St Louis. The couple we knew in nearby Illinois, the husband's Father was a member of the reenactment on one of the Keel boat replicas like in the original expedition. We also visited the museum nearby.😊

[@jonathanstensberg]

This is not surprising at all. Most major rivers have only a few major cities on them. The reasons are manifold: 1. Major rivers tend to have large lowlands that are poorly suited for major cities. 2. Major rivers tend to have periodic catastrophic floods that cost lives and fortunes. 3. Major rivers have numerous access points, allowing commerce to be spread out along its length rather than concentrated. 4. Major rivers tend to have few of any falls that would provide natural concentration points for commerce. 5. Major rivers tend to have navigable tributaries that allow for commercial traffic to push deeper into the continent before disembarking. These factors usually mean that a major river will have a city located near the mouth that serves as an ocean port and a city located near the navigable head that serves as a land port, with few cities in between. Cities will instead be located on the navigable tributaries, especially near their falls, navigable heads, or other points of commercial concentration. Viewed this way, the Lower Mississippi is actually noteworthy for having such large cities like Baton Rouge and Memphis, rather than a lack of cities.

[@lilgarlicbread]

I'm from New Orleans and have lived here all my life. I really want my city to be this great, huge population center, but I think our heyday is behind us-- especially after Katrina.

[@voiceofreason2674]

Our best days are not behind us, with our port were basically operating at baseline right now.

[@dalegoff219]

With Landry coming in, I'm worried any changes for the "better" are gonna be at the expense of the residents. Landry's cronyism is gonna make Edwin Edwards look like an amateur.

[@roberthussey595]

@@dalegoff219 - I call Jeff Landry - PeeWee Herman… Electing the former Attorney General is going to be seen as the worst move the voters of LA have ever made

[@WJV9]

Of course few people want to live in a flood zone, rich farm land is too important to cover up with concrete and asphalt. Build on the high ground on river bluffs makes sense.

[@TadDonaghe]

Ouch. I grew up in Vicksburg. On the river in Mississippi. But yeah, it was only 33,000 people when I lived there, and just over 20,000 now.

[@jamesalexander5623]

Vicksburg now is just a Civil War Museum! .... But a Beautiful One!

[@warrenstribling3386]

I'm from Northeast Arkansas, part of the Delta. Besides all the obvious farming exports we have, we're a small town county, that produces more steel than Pittsburgh. We've got Nucor, US Steel, and Tenaris. And they all use the river to ship.

[@777macdude]

blytheville, Osceola???

[@dalegoff219]

I did a job once at a NUCOR in the Arkansas portion of the ArkLaTex, in the middle of winter. 20° outside, and about 120° inside. 🤣

[@Blackdiamondprod.]

10:10 so, you contradict yourself in this very video. You named 3 major cities off the southern Mississippi, and only 2 near the northern section.

[@terranceakerson3480]

I believe you missed the Minnesota River which flows into the Mississippi at Fort Snelling. The Minnesota River connects with the Red River which was a trade route to Hudson Bay.

[@dennisenright9347]

The land next to a river is called the floodplain. The name should probably suggest that one should not build a city there.

[@Odin029]

New Orleans sits at what was the most ideal portage location between the Mississippi River and Lake Pontchartrain so it had to be where it is, and Memphis is called Bluff City for a reason. It's literally built on the bluffs along the riverbank. Even with the elevation Memphis is sometimes at risk of flooding.

[@wilsonpickett3881]

Hmmm. The Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area has 5.5 million people. The river runs right through the Twin Cities. Upstream is St. Cloud which has 200,000. Then there's LaCrosse, WI which has 140,000 in the metro area. Moving on Dubuque metro has 190,000, the Quad Cities has 475,000, St. Louis has a metro population of just under 3 million, Memphis has 1.4 million, Baton Rouge is 775,000, and New Orleans is 1.3 million.So that's just under 13 million just in the largest cities. That doesn't even begin to account for smaller cities like Vicksburgh, Cairo, Cape Girardeau, etc. and thousands of small towns.

[@johnnguyen6159]

Maybe just a coincidence but a lot of major cities along the Mississippi are some of the most violent cities in the US. St. Louis, Memphis, Baton Rouge, New Orleans, usually make it to the lists of top 10 cities with highest crime rate not to mention smaller cities like East St. Louis and Cairo. The only exception sort of is Minneapolis/St. Paul.

[@jesseandersen4055]

Fun fact I only know cause this video made me curious. South America has 5 of the 10 largest rivers (when measured by volume). On top of that that the Amazon puts out 5times more water than the second largest river and 80 times more water than the Nile, which is the only river comparable in length to the Amazon.

[@jKLa]

So, Memphis, Tennessee which is along the Southern half of the Mississippi river population, roughly 600,000 and with a metro of around 1.3 million, is not a major US city to you... Really???

[@robertmartinjr.4537]

I'm from a small town in Eastern Arkansas that is directly on the banks of the mighty Mississippi. I have very fond memories growing up near Ole man River.

[@kevinmcconnell3641]

The St. Louis metro areas last large flooding was actually from the Missouri River, less than 5 river miles from its confluence. The COE has levied the Mississippi river north of St. Louis to minimize flooding. But once you get south of St. Louis the flood plain widens dramatically.

[@kc_1018]

My old college roommate was from Washington County Mississippi which is north of Vicksburg. I remember him telling me it's humid as hell and the region is full of poverty.

[@williamperkins9125]

As far as living in Mississippi goes, there is the consideration that south of Memphis to the mouth, a lot of the land is either privately owned agricultural or an easement of the Corps of Engineers. The latter especially is not keen on private development of land required to mitigate flooding.

[@elizabethdavis1696]

Please consider doing a video on what the United States would look like if state lines were decided by watersheds

[@breadjesus8289]

Yes

[@alissaharris8035]

As they should be ! You cannot control water.

[@Ad-qt8lx]

I remember like 3 yrs ago 2 boys (16 & 21 yrs old) went duck hunting or scouting near Vicksburg. They didnt come home, bodies were never found. 1 of them took their lab with them, poor puppy disappeared too. they used their other lab that didnt go hunting to search for them. I think they found their boat and some life jackets washed up. Was a big deal in central ms. I remember it bc my brother and dad duck hunt, we've had labs all my life, and the boys were mine and my brothers age. This was in December and it was unusually consistently cold that year. That following February we got that wild ice storm (the one that almost took out texas). I think they stopped looking for the boys at Christmas. They most likely drowned and it coulda been prevented had they worn lifejackets. And the water that day was below freezing. They definitely fell out, got exhausted and drowned trying to swim to the boat or bank. Labs r made for the water, cold water too and it most likely had a vest on to keep it warm. The dog probably couldnt make it either. Should respect the rivers, ESPECIALLY the Mississippi. It is a monster. Its fast and huge. Never catch me not wearing a life jacket on the Mississippi in a damn john boat. edit: i just did some reading about it, the boat hit rocks and they found boots. Its a death sentence to jump in deep water with boot or waiters on. I think 1 of them fell out and the other took his boots off before jumping out to help

[@glennrishton5679]

I was reading a notice some years ago from the Coast Guard an interesting fact. The majority of men who go out in their boats fishing/hunting and never returning their bodies are found and their zippers are down. The stood up in their boat to urinate and fell overboard.

[@Ad-qt8lx]

@@glennrishton5679 yea that makes sense.

[@FirstLast-qf1df]

Minneapolis and St. Paul, St. Louis, Memphis, New Orleans. What are you talking about when you say "so few people"?

[@interwebtubes]

Nice. Piece, As a little fun -fact is that broadcast station call signs or station signs begin with a letter W for stations located on the east side of the Mississippi River , Fior example WABC RADIO AND TELEVISION NM OVER THERE IN NEW YORK CITY , Or KFI RADIO IN LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA , WGN television in Chicago, Illinois , This was done so that the federal communications commission could easily determine where any given broadcast station was located

[@UserName-ts3sp]

and then of course you have the oddballs like KDKA in pittsburgh

[@Lee-jh6cr]

I live on the river and these designations are evident here. I've always wondered why W and K?

[@interwebtubes]

Gotcha, Please remember to keep your hands clean and washed up at all times so that you can protect your health, Stay safe buddy and thanks for your feedback

[@UserName-ts3sp]

@@Lee-jh6cr i looked it up. the US was given certain letters for radio communications. W, K, N and A. N and A are used for military, so you see W and K for radio and tv

[@Lee-jh6cr]

Thanx for checking! It was late and I was too tired. Where I live we have several radio stations - W on the east side of the river & K on the west. And now to check what is done N of Itasca, , ,

[@Nicksonian]

At (9:17) “Less prone to FOODING.”

[@kosjeyr]

It's "I" - tasca. Not "E" - tasca. Edit: also surprised you didn't mention the Quad Cities as "major cities" in the northern half of the Mississippi.

[@tyrepair]

It almost sounded like he said “It”-aska. I could see how someone might make that mistake if they didn’t know.

[@Fly420]

Grew up in St Louis and lived in Mpls for 18 years. The River has been a part of my life since I was born. The recent droughts were disheartening.

[@stuartyablon7184]

WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? No major cities? What qualifies as "major"? St. Louis? Minneapolis? Memphis? New Orleans?

[@ohcrounches1989]

Ha I live 6 miles from Bellevue IA on the illinois side but it's so rural here I have to drive over 40 miles to get to Bellevue to access the closest bridge to me.

[@anthonyhall4427]

South Carolina and Georgia is separated by water as well. The longest stretch, which is the Savanah River. And there are parts in which is the same as you was saying about the state on the other side (esculades).I all ways wonder why 🤔. But it makes sense now that you explained it for the Mississippi River

[@chriscich]

I don't recall you bringing up the New Madrid Fault Zone as another reason there are no huge settlements south of Saint Louis. New Madrid experiences a major earthquake every hundred years and living in the area and building tall structures in that area is pointless.

[@mrdude98712]

One major part that is overlooked is that the Mississippi River is the death of local Native American tribes, they used it for transportation and as a trade route similar to other major waterways. Rebuilding a massive river trade route would take decades after the white Americans moved to the region, but this was also when trains showed up; thus, the river was no longer the only means of transport. The invention of trains made us less dependent on water allowing America to develop differently than places that have roots from times with river-centered trade routes like Wuhan China.

[@johnmorgan5009]

You have the wrong pronunciation for Cairo, IL. You pronounced the same way as Cairo, Egypt. Unfortunately, Illinois has a different pronunciation for it. It is pronounced more like Kayro. Illinois has done this to several cities around the state where the local pronunciation is radically different from the foreign city, Marseilles is another example. Illinois also has several portions of its area to the west of the Mississippi. One of the areas west of the Mississippi is Kaskaskia, IL. This was at one time the capitol of Illinois.

[@forgottenplaces9780]

Since when are Memphis and New Orleans not major cities?

[@mister.sinister18]

Since always

[@highlymedicated2438]

​​@@mister.sinister18 But they are a major city. Even if they're only considered a major city in the state

[@mister.sinister18]

@highlymedicated2438 Maybe in the past they were major cities but not anymore

[@forgottenplaces9780]

@@mister.sinister18 anything over 100k is a major city imo, memphis is over 600k and new orleans is 376k, even Baton Rouge is over 200k per us census, this guy just ignores that to fit his narrative

[@davidmontville4885]

3:25 You could have mentioned that it is connected to the Great Lakes and was a major contributor to the growth of Chicago and the Midwest.

[@Compucles]

Although, it's only connected due to a canal.

[@MM91001]

The graphics of the tributaries and state boundaries were impeccable 👌🏾👏🏾

[@JosephStJames2000]

I really enjoyed this video.

[@javondoss5707]

Is Memphis, TN not a major us city?

[@gj1234567899999]

Since the river goes from north to south, and more tributary rivers and groundwater contribute to the river the further south you go, the river to the north is smaller and more tame, while to the south, the river is bigger and has more water and therefore more flooding.

[@tomhammer1784]

Right now i am sitting less than 1 mile away from the Mississippi River but luckily about 100 feet away over its crest even as it is currently flooded. Thev riverfront is flooded, but not too bad this year. 1993 was bad.

[@marcusgiles6806]

I seem to always find myself on your page. Thanks for all the great info!

[@pixelant2377]

Fun fact because of NYC more people live on the Hudson

[@MuffHam]

Can you do a episode on the Carbiou Region of BC Canada.

[@Dontwanttoliveanymore]

The Athabasca-Mackenzie watershed area could support a vast population. Even in the cold.

[@ivywoodxrecords]

The region was unavailable to American settlement prior to the Louisiana Purchase. And after the Purchase most settlement went west. So there were never really any movement of peoples up the river that way from New Orleans, they were all streaming west first towards St. Louis and then further west towards Oregon and California. They went across land, and most movement coming from the northeast, came across land routes over the Appalachians, through the Cumberland Gap, and into the Midwest. Not on ships to New Orleans and then up the river. That was the difference. And lets face it Middle America has never really been a draw for large scale migration, really ever. Besides Chicago and rust belt cities, maybe the Northwest Territories of Minnesota Wisconsin, and of course farm land all across the grain belt but the Mississippi floodplain, was mostly a highway, and people didnt really stop off too many places to see the sights. Those were wild places in wild times, and people kept moving. West. Not north south. Thats America.

[@Everclearfan86]

Memphis? Baton Rouge? New Orleans? I get these are not like Dallas-levels of 'major' but they're still along the river down south.

[@yodorob]

While the northern/central stretch of the Mississippi River is more inhabited than the southern, the only really big metro areas even there are St. Louis and Minneapolis/St. Paul. The biggest metro areas in between - the Quad Cities (Davenport/Rock Island/Moline/Bettendorf) and Dubuque - are much smaller, and are a good deal smaller than New Orleans, Memphis, or even Baton Rouge.

[@Levy7S]

to reduce the risk of flooding, buid terps. use the ground next to the terp, to make a channel, for drainage, and transport. and voila after some time there will be a city. areas where it was in the past difficult to build a city, can be now a solution, for 1. overpopulation, and 2. the utility to manage new resources. like building on raised houses, and use the ground level only for transportation.

[@colincampbell4261]

I luv your channel. Well presented, educational, enjoyable and accessible to all age groups. Thanks.

[@claykennedy6790]

No major cities in the southern part of the Mississippi? *Memphis and New Orleans* "What are we a joke?"

[@BDUBZ49]

Great video Geoff. Awesome maps and graphics.

[@aryehyehudahajzenberg9503]

Great video as usual ! Thanx a lot ! May God bless you always !

[@konstantinhuwa3064]

1:29 maybe meant was river basin, and not river valley?

[@findwill]

Respect for the dedication you put in with Aftereffects

[@visarr]

Just FYI, Cairo, Illinois is pronounce Care-O.

[@Kindle1234]

Great video, learned something tonight, thanks

[@Zarga8]

During spring when snowmelt or Midwest flooding makes its way down the river to the Gulf, I have seen the river at the TOP of the levee. Here in Baton Rouge

[@pjaypender1009]

I live on the Mississippi. As in, so close I could sit on my porch and throw rocks into the water.54

[@flamingvans1135]

The current and former residents of Valmeyer, IL, can answer THAT question. As can anyone who lived along the Mississippi River in 1993.

[@fxrivrgirl]

Flood of 93 water flooded pictures of the river level just below electric lines 8-9 miles inland across from Warsaw IL on east side of Mississippi on the Missouri side. Wayland MO sl elevated from that long flood plain. It wiped small towns completely off the maps on the Illinois side....

[@flamingvans1135]

@@fxrivrgirl It was a mindblower to see the new post-1993 town of Valmeyer, moved to a bluff above the river, while the few remaining riverside Valmeyer buildings sit abandoned. There hasn't been a series of rains like that since then, but with weather, there's always a chance.

[@NoneFB]

You are a very good speaker.

[@jamesonevers3262]

Hey Geoff awesome video, for Cairo Illinois though, a lot of the reason it is so spare was white flight in the 60's as it was not a big city then it was certainly a much larger city, and it was growing.

[@llfields3]

Minor geographic detail, Cairo in Illinois is pronounced "Kay-Row," I'm guessing it has to do with Creole-type effect rooted in the French, English and Native American dialect influences. Another fun fact, the meandering of the Mississippi nearly caused the city of St. Louis to be cut off from the main channel in the early 1800's, but a series of dikes planned by young federal army officer Robert E. Lee directed the main channel back towards St. Louis. The dikes eroded what was once Duncan Island, but more interestingly connected Bloody Island to Illinois, an island that hosted many duels which gave it its name.

[@glennrishton5679]

Little known history about RE Lee saving St Louis from erosion.

[@randalln.587]

Is the river still low? Cuz Louisiana has saltwater intrusion in the wells near mouth now.

[@taylor-eugenesimmons8615]

Nice Information!!!

[@hanschristopherson8056]

The southern Mississippi is scary the flooding is insane

[@ejb1992]

“Smarter everyday” with Geoff!!

[@hperm2022]

9:19 *FOODING*