1. What was life like for Mark Twain in Hannibal, MO in the 1830’s?
Life was very different in Mark Twain’s America – especially in the heart of the country.
What was life like for Mark Twain in Hannibal, MO in the 1830’s?
Mark Twain’s America

2. Mark Twain’s America Map of the USA in 1832
Fargo
Minneapolis
Hannibal
Missouri is on the edge of the frontier.
The area to the west is “Indian territory”.
This map was drawn in 1832 and is not totally accurate.
Map of the USA in 1832
Mark Twain’s America

3. Mark Twain’s America Fargo and Minneapolis don’t exist yet.
North Dakota and Minnesota are not states yet. (ND: 1889, MN: 1858)
Hannibal can only be reached on foot or horseback.
Boats can float easily down the Mississippi but can’t easily go upstream.
Anything heavy had to be brought overland by wagon.
Map drawn in 1832
Mark Twain’s America

4. Mark Twain’s America Towns and farms are far apart.
Can only be reached on foot or horseback. Travel is slow and difficult.
Boats can’t easily travel upstream.
Towns and individual farms are far apart.
Hannibal can only be reached on foot or horseback. Travel is slow and difficult.
Goods had to be hauled overland by oxen with wagons.
Boats can float easily down the Mississippi but can’t easily go upstream due to the strong current.
Life was difficult and dangerous.
Map drawn in 1832
Mark Twain’s America

5. Accurate map of the USA in 1832
This map is accurate and gives a better sense of how Missouri was surrounded by Indian Territory.
Wars with Native American tribes to the west, north and south would continue for another 60 years.
Accurate map of the USA in 1832
Mark Twain’s America

6. Indian relocation in the 1830’s
This is also the time of the “Trail of Tears” – the forced relocation of Indian tribes from East of the Mississippi to reservations in the West, due to The Indian Removal Act of ,000 of the 15,000 Cherokee people who were relocated died during the march to Oklahoma.
Indian relocation in the 1830’s
The “Trail of Tears”

7. The natural landscape of Missouri.
Missouri has many beautiful natural features, including forests, rivers and hills.
The Mississipi River is quite wide at this point, and is lined with limestone cliffs containing many caves.
The natural landscape of Missouri.

8. Hannibal, Missouri in the 1830’s
small, isolated
surrounded by forest
steamboat travel is very new
Hannibal was small and isolated. Before steamboats, people along the river would float barges downriver to New Orleans, then sell them for firewood, since they could not bring them back upriver. Traveling overland back up the river took many weeks.
When Twain was a young boy, steamboats had just begun traveling far enough upriver to reach Hannibal.
Hannibal, Missouri in the 1830’s

9. Steamboats Bring Big Changes
Steamboats were first brought to New Orleans in 1811.
They change life on the lower Mississippi
but they don’t reach Hannibal until
Steamboats Bring Big Changes

10. Steamboats Bring Big Changes
Transporting people and goods is now quick and easy.
New Orleans to Hannibal in 3 days.
Piloting a riverboat was difficult and exciting.
Steamboats quickly changed life in towns along the Mississippi River. Goods and people could be brought up the river much more quickly, making towns more populous and giving their residents access to goods shipped to New Orleans from major cities in the U.S. and other countries.
In 1814, a steamboat could travel upriver at 3 mph, and downriver at 8 mph. As boat designs improved, they could travel even faster. By 1853, a trip from New Orleans to Hannibal took only three days.
Steamboats Bring Big Changes

11. What did Mark Twain do for fun?
Mark Twain’s America

12. 21st CenturyAmerica What do you do for fun?
Nearly all of the things shown on this slide were not available to Mark Twain because they were invented much later.
What do you do for fun?
21st CenturyAmerica

13. What do you do for fun?
21st CenturyAmerica

14. What did 1830’s kids do for fun?
hunting
Marbles
fishing
hoop rolling
board games
Checkers
Chess
Nine Men’s Morrice
Before the Industrial Revolution, toys and games for children were few and simple. Dolls, tops, stick horses, and hoops & sticks are some examples. Children would also dress up and act out what they wanted to be one day. This often included famous figures from books they were familiar with, like Robin Hood or King Arthur. During Mark Twain’s childhood, the most popular activity for boys was collecting and playing a variety of games with marbles. He would also have spent a lot of time exploring the natural environment around Hannibal, swimming, hunting and fishing.
wooden toys
dolls
Blind Man's Bluff
dress up & pretend
What did 1830’s kids do for fun?

15. What did Mark Twain do for fun?
But mainly, he spent a lot of time outdoors playing games of imagination, like:
Robin Hood
Pirates
Army battles
Davy Crockett
What did Mark Twain do for fun?
Mark Twain’s America

16. What did Mark Twain do for fun?
And exploring the natural environment around Hannibal:
caves
islands
forest
river
What did Mark Twain do for fun?
Mark Twain’s America

17. Mark Twain’s boyhood home
Mark Twain’s America

18. Later on, we’ll explore what Hannibal and the area around it look like today using Google Earth.
Find the places where Tom Sawyer has his adventures!