How historically accurate is Free State of Jones?
How historically accurate is Free State of Jones?
Despite the film’s real-life basis and its director’s extensive research, Free State Of Jones isn’t entirely historically accurate. One major deviation from reality the movie made was in its inclusion of fictional characters.
What did Newton Knight do during the Civil War?
Newton Knight, a white Mississippi farmer, led armed opposition to the Confederacy during the U.S. Civil War, creating “The Free State of Jones,” a county that supported the Union in the war.
Who is Davis Knight in Free State of Jones?
Davis Knight (8 January 1925 – 8 August 1959) was a Mississippi man of distant black descent who, in 1948, was charged with miscegenation for marrying a “white” woman, Junie Lee Spradley.
Is Moses Washington a real person?
Moses Washington (died 1865) was the leader of a group of runaway slaves who helped to form the Free State of Jones in 1862. Washington led several slaves into the swamps of Jones County, Mississippi, where they were joined by Confederate deserter Newton Knight.
What happened to Newton Knight’s son?
An autopsy ruled his death an accidental drowning. Davis’s Texas death certificate described him as a 34-year-old white man. Although the Mississippi Supreme Court had granted him the same status, the “one drop rule” of race meant that most people who knew his roots would never accept him as white.
What happened to Serena Knight in Free State of Jones?
Filming of the movie Free State of Jones is about to begin, and announcements regarding the cast are regularly appearing in movie trade papers. This despite her long life—Serena was about 85 when she died in 1923, having outlived Newt by one year. …
What happened to Newt Knight son?
What happened to Newton Knight’s first wife?
Knight withdrew from politics. By the mid-1870s, Knight had separated from his wife, Serena. He married Rachel, a freedwoman formerly held as a slave by his grandfather. In this period, Knight’s grown son, Mat (from his first wife), married Rachel’s grown daughter, Fannie, from a previous union.
Where did they film Free State of Jones?
Where was ‘The Free State of Jones’ shot? Inspired by the real-life story of Confederate deserter and activist Newton Knight, the Civil War action movie “The Free State of Jones” is set in Mississippi, but most of the film was shot throughout southern Louisiana in spring 2015.
Who are the descendants of Newton Knight?
Thomas Jefferson Knight
Mat KnightMolly Knight
Newton Knight/Descendants
Who was Newt Knight’s son?
Mat Knight
Newton Knight/Sons
Did Newton Knight divorce his first wife?
After he and Serena separated—they never divorced—Newt Knight caused a scandal that still reverberates by entering a common-law marriage with Rachel and proudly claiming their mixed-race children. The Knight Negroes, as these children were known, were shunned by whites and blacks alike.
Who was Newton Knight before the Civil War?
Newton was a grandson of John “Jackie” Knight (1773–1861), one of Jones County’s largest slaveholders before the war.
Where did Newton Knight form the Free State of Jones?
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.
Who was the leader of the Knight Company?
Newton Knight Newton Knight (November 1837 – February 16, 1922) was an American farmer, soldier and Southern Unionist, best known as the leader of the Knight Company, a band of Confederate Army deserters that turned against the Confederacy during the Civil War.
Who are the actors in the Newton Knight movie?
In summer 2016, the story of Newton Knight’s stand against the confederacy was captured on the big screen. Directed by Gary Ross, The Free State of Jones stars Matthew McConaughey as Knight and co-stars Keri Russell as Serena and Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Rachel.
