And why did it never—as I understand—take off the way its early promoters thought it would, being at a strategically important and commercially advantageous spot at the confluence of the Ohio and the Mississippi?

I’ve driven through a handful of times over the years and heard all the stories—about the flooding, the railroad bypassing the city, the corruption, the racism and resulting violence, etc. But I grew up in a Midwestern river city that’s had its fair share of similar challenges over the past couple of centuries, and I’ve visited many others, and I don’t know if I’ve ever been anywhere that feels as hollowed-out and bleak as Cairo.