The formation of the Teays River took place about five million years ago during the Tertiary period of the Cenozoic era, after the age of the dinosaurs. Tucked away securely inland, and no longer buffeted by waves or crashing continents, the plains of Ohio and the craggy peaks of the nearby Appalachian Mountains were most profoundly impacted by the power of running water... the water flowed south to north, east to west until it found its ultimate outlet in the young Gulf of Mexico, which had lapped up over several southern states in a thick finger that traces today’s Mississippi...