The town was founded in 1820 by C. L. Moore, who operated a ferry to Helena, Arkansas, located on the opposite side of the river.

[2] In 1870, the Ohio Statesman reported that the steamboat Kenton, traveling from Cincinnati to New Orleans, struck a snag at Trotter Landing and was lying on its side on the river bank.

[5] The 1910 Glidden Tour—an annual cross-county driving event sponsored by the American Automobile Association—crossed the "Father of Waters" at Trotter Landing.

The Board of Trade in Helena sent large barges to the town to carry all the vehicles, and a portion of the levee had to be temporarily cut away.

[7] Factors contributing to the demise of Trotter Landing's included the widespread construction of railways following the American Civil War, which greatly reduced the reliance on the Mississippi River as a method of transportation.