Now that George Rogers Clark has secured the western frontier, settlers from Virginia become the first Americans to migrate to the area. They label the strip of land from Alton to Chester, from the Mississippi River to the bluffs, the American Bottom. The Bottom area was created by a surge of water that was released by Mother Nature at the end of the last ice age. The river was much wider, and the valley was a lot deeper back then. In those pre-historic days, the Mississippi emptied into the Gulf of Mexico at a point just south of Cape Girardeau, Missouri.

Richard McCarty faces a court martial on charges stemming from alleged misconduct during the relief expedition from Cahokia to Fort Jefferson. He is found not guilty, but is forced to apologize to his superiors for some of the harsh things he said during an angry exchange. He had fallen out of favor at Cahokia, so he leaves and settles in Kaskaskia. At Kaskaskia, he makes out a will and leaves everything to his wife and four kids back in Mount Royal (Montreal). He then decides to return to Montreal to be with his family.