A technique of fabricating vertically well-aligned (Zn,Mn)O nanorods with room temperature ferromagnetism was discussed. These nanowires were synthesized by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. Synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD) and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) were employed to identify secondary phases and detect Mn atoms in the nanorods. A free-exciton peak was observed in low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements of the (Zn,Mn)O nanorods, demonstrating the high optical quality of the nanorod.