Cotton Gin Port is situated west of Amory on the Tombigbee
River, about a mile south of Hwy. 45. It was an early
landing site for French exploration and latter became one of the earliest
settlements in North Mississippi as pioneers moved out of the Carolinas
and Georgia circa 1815. During the early years of Monroe County,
Cotton Gin Port competed with Amory and Hamilton in importance. The
first county seat was established in Hamilton. It had become extinct
by 1880. The Historical Museum at Amory has many fine photos of
Cotton Gin Port on display.
There is a historical marker is located on the
Highway at a dirt road. The road has access restricted by a gate.
A marker in granite at the site of the extinct town of
Cotton Gin Port Mississippi was erected by the Daughters of the American
Revolution and unveiled on November 14, 1924. The marker reads:
"COTTON GIN PORT
Earliest permanent white settle-
ment in North Mississippi,
after Chickasaw Treaty of Sept. 20, 1816.
Landing place of Bienville
Expedition, 1732 and
of De Vaudreuil's, 1752, against
the Chickasaw Indians." 1
At present I cannot prove it, but I believe that this is
the likely spot that the Montgomerys settled as they moved into
Mississippi from South Carolina prior to moving to Pontotoc. Goode
Montgomery Sr.'s notes say that John Montgomery
settled there. There are records of a John C. Montgomery in Cotton
Gin Port; he was a carpenter and possibly a circuit judge.
After the Indian treaty in the early 1830's which opened up other areas of
Northeastern Mississippi for settlement, an important road ran between
Cotton Gin Port and Pontotoc.
1. The Journal of Monroe County History, 9
(1985) 32.
