Rodney, Jefferson County, MS

Once a very important port on the Mississippi River, it is now considered a ghost town having been forsaken by both railroads and the river. It’s history can be traced to the early 18th Century when it was originally known as Petit Gulf, in contrast to Grand Gulf which is situated a little further upstream.¹ Rodney was incorporated in 1828 and named for Judge Thomas Rodney.² Rodney’s claim to fame comes from an incident that occurred during the US Civil War. On September 12, 1863 about 25 members of the crew of the USS Rattler, including the captain, were captured by Confederate cavalrymen while attending church services at the Presbyterian church in Rodney. The church still stands and carries scars from where the USS Rattler’s remaining crew fired upon it after finding out about the capture of their fellow crew members.³

1. http://www.southpoint.com/states/ms/rodney.htm [↩]
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney,_Mississippi#Early_history [↩]
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodney,_Mississippi#Civil_War_effects [↩]