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Near Port Gibson in Claiborne County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)
 

Grindstone Ford

 
 
Grindstone Ford Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, March 22, 2010
1. Grindstone Ford Marker
Inscription. This ford marked the beginning of the wilderness of the Choctaw nation and the end of the old Natchez District. Nearby Fort Deposit was a supply depot for troops clearing the Trace in 1801-02, and troops were assembled here during the Burr conspiracy allegedly to separate the Western States from the Union. The site takes its name from a nearby water mill.

The trail to your left takes you to the Old Trace and Grindstone Ford.
 
Erected by National Park Service.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Forts and CastlesRoads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the Natchez Trace series list.
 
Location. 32° 0.177′ N, 90° 53.734′ W. Marker is near Port Gibson, Mississippi, in Claiborne County. It is on Natchez Trace Parkway (at milepost 45.7). Marker is located next to parking lot at end of turnoff road for Grindstone Ford from Natchez Trace Parkway. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Port Gibson MS 39150, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southwest Mississippi, in Natchez Trace Corridor, and in Greater Jackson. It is also in the American South, specifically in the Deep South, and in the Great River Road Region. Globally, it is in North America, a Gulf of Mexico state, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain, the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Skirmish at Willow Springs (approx. 2.3 miles away); Fight for Hankinson's Ferry (approx. 2.6 miles away); Grant at Hankinson's Ferry (approx. 2.6 miles
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away); Site of the Hermitage (approx. 3.6 miles away); Sunken Trace (approx. 4.2 miles away); The Road to Vicksburg (approx. 4.7 miles away); Owens Creek (approx. 5.7 miles away); St. Peter A.M.E. Church (approx. 5.8 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Gibson.
 
Another marker is no longer nearby. Mangum Mound (was approx. 0.8 miles away but has been confirmed missing).
 
Also see . . .  Natchez Trace Parkway. Official National Park Service website. (Submitted on August 17, 2015.) 
 
Grindstone Ford Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
2. Grindstone Ford Marker
Beginning of Trail Leading to Old Trace image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
3. Beginning of Trail Leading to Old Trace
Interpretive sign "Grindstone Ford" missing
from support post in lower right of photo
Grindstone Ford Interpretive Sign image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, March 22, 2010
4. Grindstone Ford Interpretive Sign
Riverboatmen on foot or horseback crossed here, northbound, after floating cargoes down the Ohio and Mississippi to New Orleans. Soldiers splashed across from the north to protect the Natchez District from British and Spanish threats. For post riders, Indians, bandits, and preachers, Bayou Pierre was the line between civilization and wilderness.
Family Cemetery Along the Old Trace image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
5. Family Cemetery Along the Old Trace
The Old Trace near the Cemetery image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, March 22, 2010
6. The Old Trace near the Cemetery
View to the south
Interpretive Sign on the Trail to Grindstone Ford image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
7. Interpretive Sign on the Trail to Grindstone Ford
View to the south
Daniel Burnett's Stand Interpretive Sign image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
8. Daniel Burnett's Stand Interpretive Sign
Daniel Burnett's Stand ... stood near here. Burnett was speaker of the Territorial House of Representatives, a principal negotiator with the Choctaws, and a framer of the State Constitution – but his Stand was unpretentious. His guests supped on mush and milk in a room filled with their own gear and Burnett's supplies. From here you may follow their path along the Trace to Grindstone Ford.
Old Trace Leading to Grindstone Ford image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, August 4, 2015
9. Old Trace Leading to Grindstone Ford
View to the north
Floodplain of Bayou Pierre Near Grindstone Ford image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Duane Hall, March 22, 2010
10. Floodplain of Bayou Pierre Near Grindstone Ford
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on December 19, 2012, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. This page has been viewed 1,460 times since then and 49 times this year. Photos:   1. submitted on December 19, 2012, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.   2, 3. submitted on August 17, 2015, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.   4. submitted on December 19, 2012, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.   5. submitted on August 17, 2015, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.   6. submitted on December 19, 2012, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas.   7, 8, 9, 10. submitted on August 17, 2015, by Duane Hall of Abilene, Texas. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.
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Jun. 17, 2026