The earliest settlers arrived on the banks of the Whitewater River in 1806, quickly populating the area and transforming the wilderness into farmland. By the end of the century, the National Road, the rivers, and the railroads combined to make Richmond a manufacturing, commercial, architectural, and cultural center. The images found in this book document the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when Richmond was at the height of its affluence and its buildings, parks, bridges, and homes were among the finest in the state. This is also the period when postcards became a common form of quick communication and publishers produced them in great numbers. Richmond provided unlimited source material for these cards.