The Litija settlement emerged at the arc of the greatest bend made by the Sava River in the entire Posavje range. Even though in the distant past the centre of the area developed in the nearby Šmartno pri Litiji, Litija took the advantage of its position on the Sava River bank. Apart from the mining industry, the Litija area and its development were strongly influenced by river navigation, with ferries crossing the Sava at several points near Litija. Regardless of the fact that Litija was a market town, the life of its inhabitants in the first half of the 19th century did not differ considerably from the life in its rural hinterlands. Most inhabitants of Litija worked their various-sized farms, while others took further advantage of Litija s position on the river bank by deriving extra income from activities and handicrafts associated with the then dense river traffic.