June 16, 1834
Warm, cloudy sky. During the night they repaired the engine at Vevay, and we then continued [on]. Vevay was established by Swiss [immigrants] from the Pays de Vaux [canton of Vaud]. In Cincinnati I sampled wine grown [sic, made] there [in Vevay] and found it very good. It had the color of a Madeira [and] a somewhat similar taste, only not as strong and alcoholic. By chance, we did not get to see Vevay, because [on our way west and again coming east] we sailed past this place at night.
The banks of the Ohio are continuously forested, [the forest] alternating with houses surrounded by their fields and plantings. The Sambucus blossomed (probably canadensis) in large numbers in open areas of the forest; seen from a distance, [the blooming clumps] formed large white spots.
At seven o’clock in the morning, we reached the village, or town, of Rising Sun [Indiana], with a few fairly attractive houses. Later, Petersburg [Kentucky] was located to our right, and about nine o’clock, Aurora [Indiana] on the left. At twelve o’clock the United States Mail steamboat Franklin ran swiftly by us. We reached Lawrenceburg [Indiana] after about three-quarters of an hour and then approached the city of Cincinnati. Settlements, houses, and country homes have begun to increase in its vicinity. Among the latter we saw some very nice ones located in the shadows of old beech [and] tulip trees, Babylonian willows, and other beautiful trees.
After lunch we reached Cincinnati [and] disembarked at a large place [paved] with cobblestones on the riverbank, where [we met] numerous German emigrants. Many of the people who took travelers’ luggage to the inns were Germans, almost all of them from Rhenish Bavaria, Baden, or Württemberg. I, too, had such a driver to the Hotel Cincinnati, which is located at that harbor square.