[mac_truck]

Clearly, from the figures presented in the document you linked to a while back, New Orleans was by far the more important southern port.

For what it's worth, the City of Charleston is one of the oldest seaports in the United States dating back to 1670. At the time of the American Revolution it was the fourth largest city in the Colonies, and several of the wealthiest Americans lived in Charleston at that time. The only impediment to Charleston's establishment of a shipbuilding industry prior to enactment by Congress of the Navigation laws [imo] was the predominantly foppish nature of it's inhabitants.

[jaguaretype]

I don't know where you guys find all the time to gather this data / information but it's a good history lesson (some of it seems like minutiae but still worthy of tucking away) so.....thanks