The Mississippi’s Forgotten People: Life on Shantyboats and the Margins of American Society

The Mississippi’s Forgotten People: Life on Shantyboats and the Margins of American Society

From The Mississippi Valley Traveler Podcast by Dean Klinkenberg

September 10, 2025 · 1h 21m · Episode 67

About this episode

This episode features a discussion with historian Gregg Andrews about shantyboat communities and their historical significance along American rivers.

Send us Fan Mail A hundred years ago, shantyboat communities could be found along many rivers in the US. Historian Gregg Andrews went in-depth to research these communities, inspired in part by the discovery of a personal connection to them, which resulted in a book called “Shantyboats and Roustabouts: The River Poor of St. Louis, 1875 to 1930.” In this episode, I talk with Gregg about those shantyboat communities. After Gregg describes how he got interested in shantyboat communities, he desc...

People in this episode

Host: Dean Klinkenberg

Guest: Gregg Andrews

Topics covered

  • shantyboat communities
  • American society
  • historical research
  • river culture
  • marginalized groups

Keywords

  • shantyboats
  • American history
  • river communities
  • Gregg Andrews
  • marginalized people

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Shantyboats and Roustabouts: The River Poor of St. Louis, 1875 to 1930

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