What has often been taken for granted is now appreciated and becoming a popular topic among educators and historians, agriculture is moving to the forefront as a favorite destination among domestic visitors and international travelers to the Great River Road in Illinois. Civilization began with agriculture, and as America emerged on the world's horizon, the Mississippi River played a vital role in elevating this country as the primary supplier of food for six billion people today. From Native American Indians who first farmed along the banks of the Mississippi to an inventor who used the speed of the river as transportation to increase production of his farming equipment, the Great River Road in Illinois National Scenic Byway tells the story of people and places that contributed to the enormous progress in agriculture that serves a bountiful base to the people all over the world.