The H&C Ferry was a ferry that operated between Cannelton, Indiana and Hawesville, Kentucky until the mid-1930s.

Richard and Clary Hawes settled in the Yelvington/Maceo, KY area in 1810. They arrived five years before the founding and naming of Owensboro. After the death of Richard, Clary operated the Hawesville and Canelton ferry, which was licensed to her in 1834. This eventually grew to be the largest ferry operated in Kentucky known as the H&C before it shut down in 1966, when the Lincoln Trail Bridge opened. From the early days of settlement, the Ohio River was the center of commerce in Hawesville. Steamboat construction flourished along the riverfront and a thriving coal mining industry made the town one of the chief refueling points on the river. Hawesville even produced several men who became famous for their exploits on the river: John Cannon, the famous riverboat builder and captain, was born in 1820 on a farm near the Ohio River upstream from Hawesville. His fastest boat, the Robert E. Lee, defeated the Natchez, July 4th 1870, in the most heralded steamboat race ever held in America. While operating the H&C ferry, Captain W.D. Crammond built four steamboats in Hawesville and ran a packet service on the river. Arthur Rees of Hawesville was an engineer on many Ohio River steamboats, including the Belle of Louisville. Residents in Kentucky and Indiana continued to cross the river on the ferry as John Crammond leased the ferry rights in 1892. J.W. Pate of Cloverport ran it during the 1920’s and Earl Bettinger of Tell City assumed operation in the 1930’s untill 1966.
Historical Marker #1918 Hawes Family Cemetery commemorates the Hawes family and their contributions to Daviess County’s history, particularly in the Yelvington area.