Mississippi River is the largest in the United States and is the nation's chief waterway. Nickname is Old Man River. Mississippi has a larger percentage of black residents than any other state. Although cotton is the most important crop in Mississippi, corn, peanuts, pecans, rice, sugar cane, sweet potatoes, soybeans, food grains, poultry, eggs, meat animals, dairy products, feed crops and horticultural crops are all important to the state's economy.