When the Mississippi Ran Backwards : Empire, Intrigue, Murder, and the New Madrid Earthquakes

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That same day, the Mississippi River's first steamboat, piloted by Nicholas Roosevelt, powered itself toward New Orleans on its maiden voyage. The sky grew hazy and red, and jolts of electricity flashed in the air. A prophecy by Tecumseh was about to be fulfilled.

He had warned reluctant warrior-tribes that he would stamp his feet and bring down their houses. Sure enough, between December 16, 1811, and late April 1812, a catastrophic series of earthquakes shook the Mississippi River Valley. Of the more than 2,000 tremors that rumbled across the land during this time, three would have measured nearly or greater than 8.0 on the not-yet-devised Richter Scale. Centered in what is now the bootheel region of Missouri, the New Madrid earthquakes were felt as far away as Canada; New York; New Orleans; Washington, D.C.; and the western part of the Missouri River. A million and a half square miles were affected as the earth's surface remained in a state of constant motion for nearly four months. Towns were destroyed, an eighteen-mile-long by five-mile-wide lake was created, and even the Mississippi River temporarily ran backwards.

The quakes uncovered Jefferson's nephews' cruelty and changed the course of the War of 1812 as well as the future of the new republic. In When the Mississippi Ran Backwards, Jay Feldman expertly weaves together the story of the slave murder, the steamboat, Tecumseh, and the war, and brings a forgotten period back to vivid life. Tecumseh's widely believed prophecy, seemingly fulfilled, hastened an unprecedented alliance among southern and northern tribes, who joined the British in a disastrous fight against the U.S. government. By the end of the war, the continental United States was secure against Britain, France, and Spain; the Indians had lost many lives and much land; and Jefferson's nephews were exposed as murderers. The steamboat, which survived the earthquake, was sunk.

When the Mississippi Ran Backwards sheds light on this now-obscure yet pivotal period between the Revolutionary and Civil wars, uncovering the era's dramatic geophysical, political, and military upheavals. Feldman paints a vivid picture of how these powerful earthquakes made an impact on every aspect of frontier life -- and why similar catastrophic quakes are guaranteed to recur. When the Mississippi Ran Backwards is popular history at its best.

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He does explore some interesting historical events that coincided in time with the quakes, but fails to make any of the events real or meaningful, leaving the reader wondering why he bothered to write this ultimately superficial book. It seems he chose to weave the tales together and, by doing so, did justice to none. Unfortunately, this book's Title is a misnomer as it promises so much and goes backwards from there. It is as if the author were unsure - did he want to write about an historical period in time (1800 to say 1815), or about some very important events (the first steamboat down the Mississippi which just happened to coincide with one of the New Madrid Quakes), or about the not as important but certainly tawdry tale of a failed branch of the Jefferson family.

This type of mistake is untenable in that it draws a conclusion within its assertion and suggests the possibility of other errors throughout the text.Readers of history would be better served by David McCullough or Joseph E. I would have liked to have given this book more than a two star rating. Ellis. However, for those who wish to discover more about the New Madrid earthquake, you probably won't find it here. Somewhere between steamboats on the Mississippi, relations with local Indian tribes, and the War of 1812 the story of the quake is minimally told.A glaring error is found on page 227 where the author states that at the Battle of New Orleans the British troops fought with Wellington at Waterloo--a battle that occured six months later.

As fate would have it, Nicholas unwittingly chose the year of the quakes to test the New Orleans against the potentially murderous waters of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. Well, speaking of earthquakes.this is one book that I've meant to review for quite a while and now, with a typhoon set to arrive at any moment, we'll begin.Jay Feldman has written a fascinating study of the New Madrid earthquakes of 1811--1812 which takes us through the politics of Native-American removal, the advance of the industrial revolution, internationsl politics, the horrors of slavery, the science of geology, the physics behind it, and all points in between. refashioned several hundred miles of the American frontier, and explains in a cogent fashion the arcana of seismology so that a layman can understand exactly what happened; but he gives us four focci through which we see how the quakes impinged on society, impelling savants, scoundrels and even seers to their peculiar destinies. Read the book.

But the crowning danger was the night that the Mississippi did indeed flow backwards. Did the Roosevelts and their ship survive. Moreover, the Mississippi was the haunt of river pirates, the war-gound of Native-Americans, and the catch-all for all manner of rough and tumble individuals who lived comfortably outside the reach of the law. Roosevelt's little girl was also with them as well as the family dog.

Each of these turbulent stories happened at the same time and reached their crises and denouements as Nature turned herself upside down and islands disappeared, new lakes fashioned themselves in front of disbelieving eyes, columns of water and sand blew into the air and wild birds were so frightened that they alighted on the arms of astonished on-lookers.Feldman is in complete command of his sources, and recounts the various stories in a gripping manner. In addition, Roosevelt's wife insisted on coming along, even though she was due to give birth during the trip. Not only does he give us a look at first-hand accounts of the tragedy itself--in which a series of quakes (some of which would have measured a mind-boggling 8 or higher on the Richter scale). As anyone who's ever read Mark Twain's Life on the Mississippi knows, the river was filled with perils for those who were fortunate enough to captain river boats in more cultivated times; but can you imagine navigating the "American Nile" for the first time ever.

Nicholas designed and built the New Orleans, the first steam-boat to navigate the Mississippi. He deftly interweaves the stories of Tecumsah, the gifted orator who attempted to set up a pan-tribal league to oust white domination of North America; the first riverboat, built and piloted by Theordore Roosevelt's great uncle; the grisly death of a slave at the hands of Thomas Jefferson's nephews and the consequent frontier justice; and the career of a scoundrel who plotted against American shipping interests, yet still managed to attain high distinction in the military, and was not found out until after his death. It's rare for a book of history to be a page-turner, but this one certainly is.I guess the saga of Nicholas Roosevelt and his wife Lydia gripped my imagination the most.

This book would make a good source of material for any researcher. The historical facts were well researched. This is an interesting book but somewhat disorganized. The best part was when the author was describing the earthquakes and all that occurred.

It is well written and enjoyable. I don't know what to say except that the book is good.