The movie “The Free State of Jones” which opened in theaters June 24, tells the story of Newton Knight, who led an armed rebellion against the Confederacy that began during the Civil War and continued afterward in Jones County, Mississippi. The film was written and directed by Gary Ross and stars Matthew McConaughey, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Mahershala Ali and Keri Russell. It has already grossed $8.4 million in its first week, according to BoxOffice Mojo, though reviews have been mixed.
Knight deserted the rebel army, returned home and rallied other poor farmers and blacks fleeing slavery, to form an armed resistance and secede from the Confederacy. Jones County consisted mostly of small farms with struggling landowners who had little interest in fighting for the interests of wealthy planters who could avoid military service if they had more than 20 enslaved workers. The farmers also resented Confederate efforts to tax them and confiscate their provisions.
The film should revive interest in this period of history, which in the past has inspired another film, at least one novel, articles and scholarly works. Among the latter is “The Legend of the Free State of Jones,” by Rudy H. Leveret, Ed.D, published by the University of Mississippi Press in 1984 and reprinted 2009. It is considered the first to take a comprehensive scholarly look at the Jones County uprising. The book is offered by DiverseBooks:
Legend of the Free State of Jones, by Rudy H. Leverett, $22.50, List Price: $25.00, University of Mississippi Press, ISBN 9781604735710, pp. 143.
Dr. Leverett was a native of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, who died in 1999. In this book, he debunks some of the legends about the incidents in Jones County based on facts and available records.
http://diversebooks.net/legend-of-the-free-state-of-jones-1.html
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