Where did they come from? Where did they go? Ohio had many different routes of migration. The ships come into Cleveland and the Lake Erie ports on the north, the paddlewheelers came up the Mississippi River to the Ohio River into Cincinnati, and folks crossed the state on their way west from the states to the east. View a map of land migration routes and/or visit articles about Pioneer Migration Routes through Ohio. As the population of Ohio grew, pioneer families left in search of more land and opportunity to the west. We hope that this database will help you discover the locations from which they came.