> Before the 1900s, we weren't able to build cities far from water because of their demand for transportation.

Incorrect.

In the 1800s the train took off as a primary form of transportation. By 1869, we'd completed the first intercontinental railway in the US which ultimately opened up the economy between the east and west.

Sears flourished as a company because of the train.

It wasn't roads which ultimately opened up mass transport, it was rail. It wasn't until the 1950s that rail was ultimately de-prioritized and roads were prioritized.