February 16, 1922(1922-02-16) (aged 92) Jasper County, Mississippi, U.S.
Resting place
Knight Cemetery, Jasper County, Mississippi
Political party
Republican[1]
Spouse(s)
Serena Turner Rachel Knight (common law)
Occupation
Farmer, former blacksmith, former soldier, U.S. Marshal
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.[2] 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.
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NewtonKnight (November 10, 1829 – February 16, 1922) was an American farmer, soldier and Southern Unionist in Mississippi, best known as the leader of...
Rachel Knight (1840 - February 11, 1889) was the African-American common-law wife to Confederate army deserter NewtonKnight (1829-1922). In 1881 she...
Whig party, Newton served two brief terms as Member of Parliament for the University of Cambridge, in 1689–1690 and 1701–1702. He was knighted by Queen Anne...
Ross-directed historical war film,Free State of Jones,in which he appeared as NewtonKnight, a Mississippi farmer.He was nominated for a Women Film Critics Circle...
Henry NewtonKnights MBE (1872 – 31 October 1959) was a British businessman and Conservative Party politician. Knights, a resident of Dulwich in south...
Hunt Philip H. Morgan James Madison Wells Mississippi Stephen Duncan NewtonKnight William L. Sharkey North Carolina Elisha Baxter John Baxter Henry H...
James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, music producer and keyboardist. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient...
small 4-room house. The leader of a number of the resident deserters, NewtonKnight, reputedly shot McLemore in the back[citation needed] as he prepared...
Florida, retrieved October 31, 2007. Kelly, James R. Jr. (April 2009). "NewtonKnight and the Legend of the Free State of Jones". mshistorynow.mdah.ms.gov...
such as the northeastern corner of the state and Jones County, where NewtonKnight formed a revolt with Unionist leanings, known as the "Free State of...
coached by former Newcastle Knights captain Sam Stewart. Newton made his first grade début coming off the bench in Newcastle Knights 45–24 victory over New...
media help. Composers James Newton Howard and Hans Zimmer, who had also worked on Batman Begins, scored The Dark Knight because Christopher believed...
American Civil War. It is very loosely based on the true life story of NewtonKnight, a farm owner who attempted to secede Jones County from Mississippi...
a vote of 69,870 to 50,490, and Alcorn retired from state politics. NewtonKnight has gained increased attention since the 2016 release of the feature...
The Dark Knight Rises. James Newton Howard was offered to return and write the score with Zimmer as he did for Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, but he...
runaway slaves to establish an abolitionist colony in Mississippi, led by NewtonKnight, who fathers a child with a black woman. That story is framed by the...
Heikki Ritavuori, Finnish Minister of Interior (b. 1880) February 16 – NewtonKnight, American farmer, soldier and Southern Unionist in Mississippi and Civil...
Emraan Hashmi Dangal Mahavir Singh Phogat Aamir Khan Free State of Jones NewtonKnight Matthew McConaughey LBJ Lyndon B. Johnson Woody Harrelson Elvis & Nixon...
northeastern corner. Among the most influential Mississippi Unionists were NewtonKnight, who helped form the "Free State of Jones", and Presbyterian minister...
Mississippi, most famously "The Free State of Jones" in Jones County, led by NewtonKnight. The vast majority of white Mississippians embraced slavery and the...
(resigned commission 1863) NewtonKnight, Company F, deserted October 1862, after the Battle of Corinth. Many members of Knight’s anti-Confederate guerilla...
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