Rodney, former city in Jefferson County, Mississippi
Rodney is a ghost town in Jefferson County with only a handful of residents, where most buildings are deteriorated or destroyed. The settlement sits on bluffs about 2 miles from the Mississippi River and still shows a few structures including two brick churches and a large overgrown cemetery.
The settlement began in 1763 as a French colony called Petit Gulf and was later renamed Rodney to honor Judge Thomas Rodney. After a prosperous river trade period in the 1800s, a shift in the Mississippi River channel in 1870 destroyed the port, and fires combined with hardship led to the town's decline.
The name Rodney honors a former judge and reflects the importance of legal authority in the town's early days. The few remaining buildings, especially the churches with their brick construction and simple forms, mirror the religious and community identity that shaped settlers' lives here.
The place is best visited from the nearby town of Lorman, starting from the Old Country Store on Highway 61 and then following a side road. The route becomes unpaved and turns to mud, especially after rain, so expect difficult terrain and potential flooding.
A church wall still shows a cannonball from the Civil War, embedded when a skirmish broke out in 1863 as Union soldiers tried to capture Confederate fighters at a service. This stuck projectile is a direct mark of the violence the town experienced during the conflict.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
