A t water level, the Mississippi River is awesome, but it looks even more impressive from the basket of a hot-

air balloon. Ask anyone in The Great

Mississippi River Balloon Race, which

happens at Natchez each October.

The balloons rise from the bluff at

Natchez and hang over the mighty

Mississippi like giant, multicolored

ornaments. Below, traffic flows from

one side of the river to the other on

twin cantilever bridges, and huge barges

riding low with cargo seem dwarfed by

the expanse of water around them.

From its headwaters, the Mississippi

River flows some 2,340 miles to the Gulf

of Mexico. In the early 19th century, a

rugged breed of men steered cargo-laden

flatboats down the river, then traveled

back home overland on the Natchez

Trace. One of the most notorious river

landings was Natchez Under-The-Hill,

a lawless area where the decent citizens

of Natchez, on the bluff above, dared

not venture. By the end of the century,

steamboats had all but replaced the

flatboat, and the reputation of Natchez

Under-The-Hill was becoming more

legend than fact. Today, you can safely

buy a drink and listen to music at Under-

the-Hill Saloon and spend the night

upstairs at the Mark Twain Guest House.

Civil War history also flows along the

Mississippi River. Memories haunt the

antebellum mansions in Natchez, and the

battlefields at Port Gibson and Vicksburg.

The Mighty Mississippi … Lore, Legend & History

So much of the state’s history and culture flows from the mighty Mississippi River.