Vicksburg Water Hardness & Quality Report (2026)

Vicksburg, Mississippi, in Warren County on the Mississippi River bluffs — the historic city of the pivotal Battle of Vicksburg (1863), site of the Vicksburg National Military Park and the Mississippi River crossing where the Yazoo Delta meets the river — receives its municipal water from the City of Vicksburg Water Division, drawing from groundwater wells tapping the Eocene Cockfield Formation or Sparta Sand Aquifer in the Warren County area. The Vicksburg area groundwater aquifer system is part of the Gulf Coastal Plain's deep sedimentary sequence.

The moderately hard 129 mg/L hardness and elevated TDS of 392 mg/L reflect the Eocene coastal plain aquifer's mineral character beneath west-central Mississippi. The Cockfield Formation (Eocene) contains calcareous sand, silt, and clay sequences deposited in warm shallow Eocene coastal environments, contributing moderate calcium and magnesium to circulating groundwater. The Sparta Sand at depth provides an alternative aquifer source with similar moderate mineral content from the Gulf Coastal Plain Cretaceous sequence. Extended residence time in these deep formations allows dissolved mineral concentrations to reach the elevated TDS values characteristic of Vicksburg's groundwater supply.

At 129 mg/L, Vicksburg's water is moderately hard — consistent with west-central Mississippi's Gulf Coastal Plain aquifer profile. Scale forms gradually in kettles and appliances over months, the dishwasher benefits from rinse aid, and faucet aerators need periodic cleaning. Quarterly descaling of heating appliances is the standard maintenance for Warren County households. The PFAS level of 6.5 ppt warrants a certified drinking water filter — the Vicksburg area's industrial port history along the Mississippi River and the broader agricultural Mississippi Delta drainage contribute to the regional PFAS background.