Camargo is a ghost town in Monroe County, Mississippi, United States.[1] Once a thriving river port, Camargo declined following the completion of a nearby railway.

Camargo
Ghost town
Camargo Show map of Mississippi Camargo Show map of the United States
Coordinates: 34°04′15.39″N 88°38′55.18″W
Country	United States
State	Mississippi
County	Monroe
Elevation	223 ft (68 m)
GNIS feature ID	709319[1]

History

Camargo was laid out in 1847, and was named by a veteran of the Mexican–American War, after a war camp near Camargo, Tamaulipas, Mexico.[2][3] Located on Old Town Creek, it was described as a "flourishing port", with schools, stores, a steamboat landing, a church, post office, cemetery, and Masonic Lodge.[2][4][5][6] The Confederate States Army won a skirmish at Camargo on July 14, 1864.[5]

The Mobile and Ohio Railroad opened about 4 mi (6.4 km) west of Camargo in the late 1840s. A plan to build a railway line from Camargo to the Mobile and Ohio mainline was prepared, and in 1854, the Camargo Branch Railroad Company was established, though the line was never constructed.[7][8] With the success of the nearby railway, Old Town Creek was neglected and became filled with trees and debris, making it impractical as a transport route.[9] "Under the new conditions of competition the little river ports suffered heavily and tended to dry up", and Camargo was abandoned by the 1870s.[4][8]

References

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