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Newton Knight
Newton Knight (November 10, 1829 – February 16, 1922) was an American farmer, soldier, and Southern Unionist in Mississippi, best known as the leader of the Knight Company, a band of Confederate Army deserters who resisted the Confederacy during the Civil War. Local legends tell of Knight and his men forming the "Free State of Jones" in the area in and around Jones County, Mississippi, at the height of the war. The nature and extent of the Knight Company's opposition to the Confederate government is disputed among historians. After the war, Knight joined the Republican Party and served in Mississippi's Reconstruction government as a deputy U.S. Marshal.
Knight has long been a controversial figure in the region, with people divided over his motives and actions. He and his allies developed a small mixed-race community in southeastern Mississippi. His interracial marriage with Rachel Knight was considered illegal, as Mississippi had banned interracial marriages before and after the war, except for a brief period during Reconstruction.
Films about Knight have included Tap Roots (1948), directed by George Marshall, and Free State of Jones (2016), directed by Gary Ross and starring Matthew McConaughey as Knight.
My father was born on November 10, 1830, though the family records show it was 1833. His mother changed the record after he shot an African American boy to get him out of being punished in court. He was the eighth of the twelve boys, and was raised a poor farmer boy, making his living farming, also building houses for his neighbors.
Newton Knight was born near the Leaf River in Jones County, Mississippi, most likely in November 1837, to Albert Knight and his wife. His birth year has been recorded by his son, Tom Knight, in a biography as 1830, and his grandniece, Ethel Knight, wrote that he was born in 1829. His gravestone has his full name as "Capt. Newton Knight", born November 10, 1829, died February 16, 1922. But the 1900 census records that Knight was born in November 1837, likely from his testimony.[citation needed][original research?] This date is consistent with census records from other years. However, it is possible Knight gave the wrong year of his birth to the census takers to hide his family origin. He was probably taught to read and write by his mother, as there were no public schools for yeomen children.
Newton was a grandson of John "Jackie" Knight (1773–1861), one of Jones County's largest slaveholders before the war. The first Knight forebear in America is believed to have emigrated to Yorktown from Worcestershire, England, in 1674. The family initially settled in Culpeper County, Virginia, where they lived until the 1720s when the family moved to Brunswick County, Virginia. In 1759, the family moved further south to Richmond County, North Carolina. In 1788, Knight's great-grandfather, William Knight, is understood to have moved to Dawson County, Georgia. John Jackie Knight moved to Mississippi in 1801, settling first in Union County and then moving to the area of Jasper County in 1811 to establish plantations Newton's father, Albert (1799–1862), however, neither owned slaves nor inherited any after his father's death. Newton Knight never owned slaves. His son wrote that he was morally opposed to the institution due to his Primitive Baptist beliefs. In accordance with its teachings, Newton forswore alcohol, unlike his father and grandfather.
Newton Knight married Serena Turner in 1858, and the two established a small farm just across the county line in southwest Jasper County, Mississippi.
Jones County elected John H. Powell, the "cooperation" (anti-secession) candidate, to represent them at Mississippi's secession convention in January 1861. Under pressure, Powell voted against secession on the first ballot but switched his vote on the second ballot, joining the majority of whites in voting to secede from the United States. In an interview many years later, Knight suggested that many voters of Jones County, not understanding how limited Powell's choices were, felt betrayed by his action.
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Newton Knight
Newton Knight (November 10, 1829 – February 16, 1922) was an American farmer, soldier, and Southern Unionist in Mississippi, best known as the leader of the Knight Company, a band of Confederate Army deserters who resisted the Confederacy during the Civil War. Local legends tell of Knight and his men forming the "Free State of Jones" in the area in and around Jones County, Mississippi, at the height of the war. The nature and extent of the Knight Company's opposition to the Confederate government is disputed among historians. After the war, Knight joined the Republican Party and served in Mississippi's Reconstruction government as a deputy U.S. Marshal.
Knight has long been a controversial figure in the region, with people divided over his motives and actions. He and his allies developed a small mixed-race community in southeastern Mississippi. His interracial marriage with Rachel Knight was considered illegal, as Mississippi had banned interracial marriages before and after the war, except for a brief period during Reconstruction.
Films about Knight have included Tap Roots (1948), directed by George Marshall, and Free State of Jones (2016), directed by Gary Ross and starring Matthew McConaughey as Knight.
My father was born on November 10, 1830, though the family records show it was 1833. His mother changed the record after he shot an African American boy to get him out of being punished in court. He was the eighth of the twelve boys, and was raised a poor farmer boy, making his living farming, also building houses for his neighbors.
Newton Knight was born near the Leaf River in Jones County, Mississippi, most likely in November 1837, to Albert Knight and his wife. His birth year has been recorded by his son, Tom Knight, in a biography as 1830, and his grandniece, Ethel Knight, wrote that he was born in 1829. His gravestone has his full name as "Capt. Newton Knight", born November 10, 1829, died February 16, 1922. But the 1900 census records that Knight was born in November 1837, likely from his testimony.[citation needed][original research?] This date is consistent with census records from other years. However, it is possible Knight gave the wrong year of his birth to the census takers to hide his family origin. He was probably taught to read and write by his mother, as there were no public schools for yeomen children.
Newton was a grandson of John "Jackie" Knight (1773–1861), one of Jones County's largest slaveholders before the war. The first Knight forebear in America is believed to have emigrated to Yorktown from Worcestershire, England, in 1674. The family initially settled in Culpeper County, Virginia, where they lived until the 1720s when the family moved to Brunswick County, Virginia. In 1759, the family moved further south to Richmond County, North Carolina. In 1788, Knight's great-grandfather, William Knight, is understood to have moved to Dawson County, Georgia. John Jackie Knight moved to Mississippi in 1801, settling first in Union County and then moving to the area of Jasper County in 1811 to establish plantations Newton's father, Albert (1799–1862), however, neither owned slaves nor inherited any after his father's death. Newton Knight never owned slaves. His son wrote that he was morally opposed to the institution due to his Primitive Baptist beliefs. In accordance with its teachings, Newton forswore alcohol, unlike his father and grandfather.
Newton Knight married Serena Turner in 1858, and the two established a small farm just across the county line in southwest Jasper County, Mississippi.
Jones County elected John H. Powell, the "cooperation" (anti-secession) candidate, to represent them at Mississippi's secession convention in January 1861. Under pressure, Powell voted against secession on the first ballot but switched his vote on the second ballot, joining the majority of whites in voting to secede from the United States. In an interview many years later, Knight suggested that many voters of Jones County, not understanding how limited Powell's choices were, felt betrayed by his action.