Asked by Makayla

Why were flatboats not always the best choice for river navigation?

They were expensive to make.
They could only carry small loads.
They often sank and were dangerous.
They were unable to travel upstream.

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
They were unable to travel upstream. Flatboats were simple, unpowered craft designed to float downstream with the current; they couldn’t make headway against it, so they were generally one‑way vessels (often dismantled and sold at the journey’s end).