Early European and American settlers subsequently established steamboat lines and railroads through the gorge.

A group of businessmen, including P. T. Barnum, founded the steamboat line.

From 1836 to 1855 Cass organized a steamboat line and a stagecoach line.

Freight business had been absorbed by railroads, leaving the competing steamboat lines dependent on tourists for revenue.

A steamboat line connecting Morganton and Knoxville began operating in 1831.

Dorrance became a director in companies involved in steamboat lines, railroads, and shipping.

The location was a convenient site for a steamboat landing and by 1847 a steamboat line had established the town as a regular stop.

When the California gold rush began in 1849, Vanderbilt switched from regional steamboat lines to ocean-going steamships.

Their company added canal, portage railroad and other steamboat lines.

Early railroads served to connect steamboat lines interrupted by waterfalls on the river's lower reaches.