History of Rodney - Her Rise

History of Rodney - Her Rise. Windsor Battlefield Tour. , The French were the first Europeans to claim this area, clled "Petit Gouffre", "Petit Golphe", "Petit Gulf", or "Little Gulf". In 1763, as a result of the French and Indian War, the area became the dominion of Great Britain. Spain captured British West Florida in 1781, and controlled this area until 1798. A 1791 Spanish land grant deeded the site of present day Rodney to Thomas Calvit, a prominent territorial Mississippi landholder. Rodney was incorporated in 1828, and named in honor of Thomas Rodney, territorial judge who presided at the Aaron Burr hearing. Rodney area citizens gave much support to Oakland College. The college influenced the entire rural area, and Rodney was a community of an unusually high level of culture. General Zachary Taylor owned Cypress Grove Plantation, a few miles south of town, and was a frequent visitor to Rodney. It is said he was there when elected president of the United States. As river transportation improved, Rodney grew in population and size and became a flourishing river town in the early 1830's, the population was about 200, and there were 20 stores, a church, a bank, and a newspaper. In the late 1850's, Rodney was noted for its county fairs, and was visited by people from all over the Lower Mississippi Valley.