The need for new trade routes to the East, the desire to spread Christianity and <em>competition between European countries </em>prompted the start of European exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries.
During the 1800s,the profitable businesses
transported flour, pork and whiskey from
farms in the northwest along American
rivers reaching as far away as the Caribbean Islands. These products were sold
and shipped and supported the businesses that developed from the industry.
