While reading Mississippi history some time back I came across a reference to the Town of Winchester. Around the same time, I read an item in this paper that was headed, “Trash problem gets resolved but it still stinks” (April 21, 2023 edition). From contemporaneous notes and recent news articles comes this opinion concerning Jackson’s prospects with the election of a new mayor and city council.
In 1798, the Mississippi Territory was created by act of Congress. In those days an old pioneer road connected Georgia with Natchez. Along that road, on the banks of the Chickasaway River and less than 80 miles northwest of Mobile, was begun the small village of Winchester in what is now Wayne County, Mississippi. In 1813 a military fort, called Patton’s Fort, was built there following the Creek Indian massacre of over 500 militia and civilians at a frontier settlement near Mobile. (Fort Mims State Historic Site, found at nps.gov.)
In 1817, Mississippi was admitted to the Union. Soon afterwards, Winchester was incorporated and became “a center of political influence, second only to Natchez.” (Wilkins, Jesse M., (1902) “Early Times in Wayne County,” Wayne County Genealogical and Historical Research (https://natchezbelle.org/ahgp-ms/wayne/earlytimes.htm).) A courthouse was erected there. Among the town’s early inhabitants was Powhatan Ellis who had been educated in the law at the College of William and Mary. Ellis sat on the Mississippi Supreme Court starting in the first year of statehood, served as a U.S. Senator, and was appointed a federal district court judge by Andrew Jackson. Another resident, John J. McRae, also became a U.S Senator and was later elected governor of Mississippi.
Although Winchester contained “more than thirty business houses, more than forty years elapsed after the founding of the town before a church was built.” Id. Notwithstanding its commercial and political prosperity, “[i]t appears that the morals of the people who lived in the town were averse to churches” as evidenced by the report that “liquor was sold openly on the Sabbath [with] much drunkenness on that day.” (A.J. Brown, History of Newton County, Mississippi, from 1834 to 1894)
Winchester’s designation as the county seat ended when the courthouse was moved to Waynesboro. “After it lost its trade and importance as a town; after other towns were established in the county; after the railroad came through the county in 1854, then the people paid some attention to the building of a church.” Winchester recognized her plight too late. Eventually, the entire town was lost to history. Today, only an archivist, with the help of an archeologist, can find the site of once prosperous Winchester in Wayne County. A state historical marker on Highway 45 notes the old town’s location.
The story of Winchester came to mind when reading about San Francisco’s efforts to recover from years of neglect, and thinking about Jackson’s disrepair. (“San Francisco is finally waking from its living nightmare,” by Melissa Lawford, May 25, 2025, The Telegraph.)
As reported, “San Francisco is in recovery [by returning to] common-sense policymaking over the far-Left ideas that brought [it] to its knees.” Id. This is because “citizen activist groups . . . have led [an] uprising against extremely liberal policy-making, overhauling the city’s political system by reducing far-Left dominance of the school board, the district attorney’s office, and the city’s board of supervisors.” With its changing of the guard, law enforcement has become more active and visible. Crime is at a 23-year low. Id.
San Francisco has a new mayor who is considered “wholly pro-business.” Id. With the other government changes taking place, he has a “license to press ahead with an agenda of reform.” As a result of these changes in personnel and philosophy, businesses that had abandoned the downtown are starting to return; and with them, office workers and shoppers. New office leasing is at a six-year high. The city’s tax revenues are up. Id.
The newly elected district attorney has proclaimed an emphasis on “accountability” and enforcement of the city’s “laws and its rules.” Id. She explained the reason for change: “I think we had a majority of people in the city that were fed up. [T]hey were being silenced by the progressives and being made to feel like [wanting] clean and safe streets is racist, anti-immigrant, is Republican.” Id. (The mayor and DA are described as “moderate” Democrats in the piece, which was written before the “peaceful” anti-ICE riots started up.)
Like those changes accounted in San Francisco, recent elections here at home appear to have signaled the end of tolerance for disorder and lawlessness and a beginning of city government that prioritizes family-centered life, legitimate businesses, public health and public safety. In my hopeful opinion, it is a promising combination that our city has a new mayor and city council, civic minded citizens, and active churches. Unlike ancient Winchester, it seems that Jackson has recognized its harmful direction in time to turn around.
Chip Williams is a Northsider.
