The history of Beaver County is the story of its waterways. The earliest residents of the county, the Monongahela people, lived along the Ohio River and hunted in the surrounding hills. The stone tools and arrow points found here, and prized by collectors, were left by these people. They disappeared from our valleys around 1600, leaving the land open for later settlement by other Native Americans, including the Delawares and Shawnees. Their villages, notably Logstown and Shingastown, were located on the shores of the Ohio River, providing access to food, water, and easy transportation. The rich Indian traditions in the country are a legacy of these people.
Early explorers, missionaries, and traders followed the river valleys to the waters of Beaver County. During the Revolutionary War, the first fort built by the Americans, Fort McIntosh, was constructed on a bluff in Beaver, overlooking the Ohio River. The blockhouse that replaced it was built on a strategic site on the shore of the Beaver River. General Anthony Wayne, who was building an army to battle the Indians in the West, selected a site on the Ohio River for his training camp at Legionville.
The earliest settlers in what would eventually become Beaver County sought farmland in the area's plentiful, lush valleys. The need to process the products of these farms brought grist mills to the tributary streams: the Little Beaver, the Connoquenessing, Raccoon Creek, and Mill Creek.
The prosperous Harmony Society selected a site on the high bank of the Ohio River near the southeastern boundary of Beaver County for its third and final home. The Ohio had already become a vital transportation artery, carrying freight and passengers to the West.
Beaver County's fortunes improved dramatically as the Industrial Revolution brought industry to the valley of the Beaver, where the many falls provided necessary water power. Towns like Beaver Falls and New Brighton experienced rapid growth as more factories were established there. In the 1830s, engineers sought a canal route to the north, selecting the Beaver Valley as the most practical option. This choice opened up trade routes to Erie and Cleveland, making towns like Rochester and Bridgewater important freight handling centers.
In the 1850s, railroads arrived in Beaver County, with their tracks following the river valleys north and west. Economy, Rochester, and Beaver Falls profited from this new and efficient transportation system, which soon expanded to rights-of-way on both sides of each river.
The turn of the century brought Beaver County's most significant growth in population and industry. Due to the transportation provided by the Ohio River, heavy industry, including steel mills and processing plants, is concentrated in the valley in Ambridge, Aliquippa, and Midland. River traffic increased tremendously from the coal and steel shipped on it, aided by a series of locks and dams, five of which were built in Beaver County.
The new miracle of atomic energy made its impression on the county in 1955 when the first peacetime nuclear power plant was built in Shippingport, on the Ohio River, whose waters were needed to cool the reactor.
Today, the rivers play a different role. The era of heavy industry is behind us, but people now have more time to play, and they look to the river for recreation. With boat docks on the Beaver River and water skiing on the Ohio, the river continues to play an essential role in our lives. Fish have returned to the once-polluted rivers, providing additional recreational opportunities.
As Beaver County approaches its third century, its waterways will continue to be a significant influence. Air traffic may ignore the rivers, and the computer and high-tech industries don't need cooling water. However, the river valleys will always remain paramount for transportation and recreation.