Warrenton is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

Warren County Warren County is the name of fourteen counties in the USA. Some are named after General Joseph Warren, who was killed in the Battle of Bunker Hill in the American Revolutionary War: * Warren County, Georgia * Warren County, Illinois * Warren County ...

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

. It is located approximately 5 miles south of Vicksburg on

U.S. Route 61 U.S. Route 61 or U.S. Highway 61 (U.S. 61) is a major United States highway that extends between New Orleans, Louisiana and the city of Wyoming, Minnesota. The highway generally follows the course of the Mississippi River and is designate ...

. Warrenton is part of the Vicksburg Micropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The earliest settlement in this community was Hopewell Methodist Church and Cemetery, established in 1805. It was the first church in Warren County, and still exists a short distance east of Warrenton. Sometime after 1809, a brick courthouse was constructed at Warrenton, and the town became the first

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...

. A post office was established in 1811, and the town incorporated in 1820. At the time, Warrenton was the largest, most centrally located, and most important place in the county. Nearby Vicksburg began to prosper due to its better landing, higher location, and more vigorous leadership. The county seat was moved there in 1825. During the 1830s, Warrenton continued as a place of cotton export. Due to the town's low-lying swampy location, it suffered from river floods and epidemics such as yellow fever, smallpox and cholera. During the Civil War,

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

forces established a fortification at Warrenton. The town was badly damaged by shelling during the war. Warrenton was a stop on the Vicksburg, Pensacola and Ship Island Railroad, constructed in the 1870s. After 1883, the river moved westward, leaving a sandbank between the town and its port. The town quickly declined. In 1903, the post office was removed. Today, the community is a mix of agriculture and residential properties. Nothing remains of the original settlement but the Hopewell Church and Cemetery. The Vicksburg Airport is located at the south end of Warrenton.

References

External links

Map from 1842
showing the location of Warrenton in Mississippi {{authority control Unincorporated communities in Mississippi Unincorporated communities in Warren County, Mississippi