Winborn, also known as Reids Switch, 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 ...

in Benton County, Mississippi, United States.

History

The area surrounding Winborn was found to have large deposits of carbonate iron ore. In 1912, businessman from

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

chartered the Memphis Mining and Manufacturing Company to process this iron ore. A railroad spur and charcoal

blast furnace A blast furnace is a type of metallurgical furnace used for smelting to produce industrial metals, generally pig iron, but also others such as lead or copper. ''Blast'' refers to the combustion air being "forced" or supplied above atmospheric ...

were constructed. The furnace had a capacity for ten tons per day and produced 125 tons of

pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate product of the iron industry in the production of steel which is obtained by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with silic ...

before closing. After the furnace closed, the iron ore was mined for paint pigment. A post office operated under the name Reids Switch from 1902 to 1905 and under the name Winborn from 1905 to 1956.

References

Unincorporated communities in Benton County, Mississippi Unincorporated communities in Mississippi {{BentonCountyMS-geo-stub