WELCOME TO the Mississippi River Home Page
with Mississippi River author, Pat  Middleton

MISSISSIPPI RIVER HOME  |  WATERWAY CRUISE REPORTS  |  Hand-painted River Maps, River Books, Note Cards and Gifts  |  Feature Articles |  FISHING| |  Hand-painted HISTORIC MAPS  |  River Classifieds  |  Contact Us  |  Press Releases | Photo Gallery | Links | BIRDING | Ramblin' On Blog | New! History of Steam Blog

We hope you'll return many times to sample our huge Mississippi River Travel, Education and Recreation resource.
As featured in American Profile Magazine, USA TODAY,  New York Times, and National Geographic Traveler Channel!
Rated #1 by GOOGLE for Mississippi River Travel and Waterway Cruise Reports since 1995
"Highly Recommended" by School Zone evaluation service
Pausing your cursor over any image on www.greatriver.com may produce additional info.

 

 Today, May 16, 2013, is the anniversary of the first time a steamboat hit a railroad bridge pier. The accident occurred between Davenport, Iowa, and Rock Island, Illinois.

Rivers and Railroads have been competing along the Mississippi River since Abraham Lincoln and the steamboat EFFY AFTON! Our newest publication is for all those RAILROAD BUFFS who've requested a collectable version of Mike Gillespie's new addition to his "Steam Era" collection. Michael offers the same thorough yet entertaining attention to historic accuracy that characterize both COME HELL OR HIGH WATER, and WILD RIVER, WOODEN BOATS! Full index, full glossary, and dozens of historic photographs!

OLD TIME RAILROAD STORIES
An Anthology of True Adventures, Humorous Tales, and High Melodrama Written by Those Who Lived the Era!

Edited, with Introductions by Michael Gillespie. Full Index, Glossary, and dozens of Historic Steam Rail Photographs Published by Great River Publishing,   172 pages, B/W   $19.95  ISBN 978-0-9711602-5-5

OLD TIME RAILROAD STORIES
  $19.95

Visit our shopping cart at www.greatriver.com/order.htm to see all our Mississippi River books and Antique Maps!

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May 16, 2013... Sandhills are still on their nests... nearly 2 weeks later than in 2012

SANDHILL CRANES RETURN TO UPPER MISSISSIPPI, March 5!

With the last flakes of the winter's heaviest snowfall, 3 Sandhill Cranes wafted noisily over the bluff tops just south of La Crosse on March 5, 2013. My guess is that it was a group of bachelors clattering away in hopes of getting a call back from another "early bird." But there was only me to greet them this time!

 

 

RAILROADS and MORE RAILROADS!! Classic Journeys with Great River Publishing!

Considering a classic railroad journey? We have reviewed the Vancouver/Banff trip on Canada's VIA Rail, Alaska, and the Rhine River by train. Visit our Waterway Cruises: Train Journeys to explore!

 

 

And also new! Our hand-painted Historic Reproduction of the MONTANA RAILWAY MAP from Great River Arts.. Order online at our new collection of hand-painted maps from the Old Northwest Territories... Alaska, British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, Montana, Wyoming, Hawaii, the Dakotas and MORE! Most of the NW Territory maps date from the turn of the 19th century. We also have a 1731 De l'Isle which is considered to be a foundational map for both the Northwest and the Mississippi River Valley.

 

 

"The Cartographer draws the map. The artist makes it beautiful." ... Quote from the Vatican collection of ancient maps.

Our map artist is now making her paintings of old maps of the Northwestern States available on our map pages ... with dynamic paintings of a 1906 series by John Bartholomew which includes Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Hawaii, and Colorado.

We are also pleased to offer Guillaume de l'Isle's 1731 foundational map, CARTE DE LA LOUISIANE ET DU COURS DE LA MISSISSIPPI, for purchase. All our maps may be studied in an enlarged format at our photo site. This map is extremely detailed for much of the United States, including the Mississippi River valley. It was compiled based on the memoirs of early fur traders and explorers and includes a special inset for the mouths of the Mississippi River.

All maps continue to be on sale, for the first time this year!

"I have visited the map page 100 times this year, wishing I could buy one of Lisa's beautiful maps...!"

If this sounds like you, take note...we are offering a special first time ever, 20% OFF SALE on ALL our Hand-painted historic reproductions of antique Mississippi River maps!! Visit www.greatriverarts.com/shopping/oldmaps.htm

And order now, this offer is extremely limited!

 

 

Summer River topics abound in the archives of Greatriver.com... Click HERE for www.greatriver.com birding archives or here for BIRDING archives from our RAMBLIN' ON Blog.  To find a vast array of articles related specifically to Eagles or other subjects, use our greatriver.com SEARCH engines!

 

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WATERWAY CRUISE REPORT: Cruising the Galapagos Islands on the Galapagos EVOLUTION!

If you have been considering a small boat cruise of the Galapagos Islands, there have been several recent developments that make the remainder of 2011 prime time for this destination. Visit our newest Waterway Cruise Report for details and recommendations for visiting Ecuador!

Armchair travelers will enjoy our extensive library of
travel photos!

America's Great River Road has been rated America's #1 Scenic Byway

The Mississippi River is taking center stage as the American Queen garners considerable favorable media with her new cruising schedule. Cruising the beautiful Mississippi River valley by road is every bit as fascinating. Small towns,  deep history, scenic vistas, and a plethora of recreational opportunities await boaters, fishermen, hikers, bikers, and others who appreciate the natural history of our great river.

Whether you are looking for a story-teller at the bow of your boat, or a "friend on the road," there is one guide to the heritage and natural history of the Mississippi River Valley that has been recommended by readers, national media, and libraries across the county:

"Discover! America's Great River Road, in four volumes,  is a terrific guide for those who relish boating, fishing, or cruising on land along the Mississippi River." ~BOOKLIST MAGAZINE, American Library Association review








 

If your travels include Memphis to the Gulf of Mexico, let us recommend:
Volume 4, DISCOVER! America's Great River Road,  MEMPHIS TO THE GULF
ISBN 09711602-1-x
240 pages. Many maps, photos, historic images. Index, Appendices
       

 Great River Road, Vol 4 Memphis to the Gulf   $19.95

SEE ALL 4 Volumes of DISCOVER! AMERICA's GREAT RIVER ROAD, many other QUALITY BOOKS, HISTORIC MAPS and Mississippi River  NOTE CARDS at  http://www.greatriverarts.com/shopping/

 "We enjoyed our epic journey enormously, thanks mostly to your DISCOVER! America's Great River Road guidebooks. The history, culture, and suggested detours provided daily fascination. We just wanted to thank you for your good work!"  ~ Readers from Vermont.

     "I am Louisiana French on my mother's side and had a 7th Grandfather who was killed at Fort Rosalie in 1729, so the Louisiana section was of great value to me. I enjoyed it so much that I would like the other three volumes of DISCOVER! Thanks so much!"  Reader from Louisiana  

    "Last year we traveled 5,000+ miles along both sides of the Mississippi River. It was a fabulous trip... in large part due to your DISCOVER! America's Great River Road  guidebooks."  Reader from Oklahoma

 

 

Great River Publishing is pleased to announce the KINDLE release of Michael Gillespie’s entertaining new steam history:  RAILROAD STORIES..True Adventures, Humorous Tales, and High Melodrama from the Days of Steam [Both Kindle and Nook Editions]

Michael applies his generous wit, dry humor, and historical insights to the school of railroading literature at the height of the steam era … journals, press reports, trade magazines all produced stories meant at the time to entertain readers… but which today offer a compelling folk history from the early days of railroads. 340 pages from the respected author of two of the river's best steamboat histories, COME HELL OR HIGH WATER and WILD RIVER WOODEN BOATS.
Click on cover image to explore a sample edition ONLINE or to download a sample directly to your Kindle or Nook!

Our popular Mississippi River FISHING REPORT now includes DAILY automatic fishing news UPDATES!

Click, left, to sign up here for FREE WEEKLY UPDATES on Travel, Heritage and Natural History along the Mississippi River!   Please put "UPDATES" in the COMMENT area. You may also add any additional comment!

 

By the way, we are also "repositioning" here at www.greatriver.com .... beginning a steady process of updating our web pages! One of my goals is to increase our ability to interact without being inundated with spam. If you visit our RAMBLIN' ON blog, please do make use of the REPLY link to send us your Mississippi River news and updates...  river questions, observations, travel news, birding, hiking... all your waterway comments are welcome!

 

Remember to visit our FEATURE PAGE DIRECTORY for an expanded listing of ALL our feature stories on Heritage, Natural History, and Recreation Resources for visiting the Mississippi River. WHAT's NEW PAGE for all that's new on www.GreatRiver.com and lots of "this and that" from Pat on the Mississippi River Blog. The FEATURE DIRECTORY is a good place to start your tour of www.GreatRiver.com Or use the SEARCH Button located on most pages. Over 31 cruise destinations are detailed in our WATERWAY CRUISE REPORTS and TRAVEL FEATURES. Not only have we been traveling and reporting on traveling the Mississippi River for 23 years, but we have concurrently been exploring many of the world's great travel destinations... and many you've never heard of!

Stunning photographs of international waterways are included in our professional Great River photo gallery.  Other galleries offer detailed photos of vistas, quality note cards, antique maps and other river art.

Click here to see just our MOST POPULAR photographs... all are available as quality 5x7" note cards, individually wrapped.
 

Our HAND-PAINTED HISTORIC MAPS of the MISSISSIPPI RIVER are considered the "most beautiful on the Internet" by many of our readers.

 

To find many unique Mississippi River products appropriate for gift-giving, education, and travel, please click images below!

Click Image left, to View Antique Map Samples

Click image to view Mississippi River Wildlife and History note cards.

 

 

MISSISSIPPI RIVER HOME  |  WATERWAY CRUISE REPORTS  |  River Books, Note Cards and Gifts  |  Feature Articles |  FISHING| |  Hand-painted HISTORIC MAPS  |  River Classifieds  |  Contact Us  |  Press Releases | Photo Gallery | Links | BIRDING | RAMBLIN' ON Blog | Mike Gillespie Blog

 

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