The True Story of the "Free State of Jones": Historic Accounts of the Mississippi County that "Seceded" from the Confederacy;

Newton Knight (1837 – 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. Local legends state that Knight and his men attempted to form the "Free State of Jones" in the area around Jones County, Mississippi, at the height of the war, though the exact nature of the Knight Company's opposition to the Confederate government is disputed.

The resolution which formed the basis of secession by Jones County provided:

“Whereas, the State of Mississippi has seen fit to withdraw from the Federal Union for reasons which appear justifiable;

“And whereas we, the citizens of Jones County, claim the same right, thinking our grievances are sufficient by reason of an unjust law passed by the Congress of the Confederate States of America, forcing us to go to distant parts, etc., etc. v

"Therefore, be it resolved, that we sever the union heretofore existing between Jones County and the State of Mississippi, and proclaim our independence of the said State, and of the Confederate States of America; and we solemnly call upon Almighty God to witness and bless this act."

Knight has long been a controversial figure. Historians and descendants disagree over his motives and actions, with some arguing he was a noble and pious individual who refused to fight for a cause in which he did not believe, while others have portrayed him as a manipulative outlaw.

A biopic of Knight entitled Free State of Jones, starring Matthew McConaughey and Gugu Mbatha-Raw, is in production and scheduled for release on June 24, 2016.

"The True Story of the 'Free State of Jones'” is a collection of historical reprints, many from the 1800's and all published prior to 1923, which shed light on the controversy over the existence of the "Republic of Jones".

Historic Reprints Included in this Book:

I.
ALLEGED SECESSION OF JONES COUNTY
By Goode Montgomery.
Publications of the Mississippi Historical Society,
Volume 8
The Society,
1904

II.
CLOSE OF THE YEAR 1863
Marching to Victory:
The Second Period of the
War of the Rebellion,
Charles Carleton Coffin
Harper & Brothers, 1902

III.
A CONFEDERACY WITHIN A CONFEDERACY
G. Norton Galloway
The Magazine of American History, Volume 16
A. S. Barnes., 1886

IV.
THE REPUBLIC OF JONES
Ninth Cavalry:
One Hundred and Twenty-First Regiment,
Indiana Volunteers
Daniel Webster Comstock
J.M. Coe, 1890

V.
A REPUBLIC WITHIN THE CONFEDERACY AND OTHER RECOLLECTIONS OF 1864.
BY W. A. DUCKWORTH.
Annals of Iowa
Iowa State Historical Department,
1915

VI.
Newton Knight et al. v. The United States
Congressional Serial Set
U.S. Government Printing Office,
1907

VII.
A MYTH OF THE CONFEDERACY.
To The Editor Of The Nation:
Samuel Willard
The Nation, Volume 54
J.H. Richards,
1892


VIII.
No Man's Lands.
Timely Topics,
Volume 2
Henry Romaine Pattengill
1897

IX.
A LITTLE-KNOWN REPUBLIC
The Outlook, Volume 124
BY MARY L. LOORAM
Outlook Co.,
1920

X.
MORE ABOUT THE REPUBLIC OF JONES
The Literary Digest,
Volume 64
Funk & Wagnalls
1920


XI.
THE AMERICAN "REPUBLIC OF JONES” OF 1864
The Literary Digest,
Volume 63
Funk & Wagnalls,
1919

XII.
Jones County “Secession.”
Mississippi: Comprising Sketches of Counties,
Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons,
Dunbar Rowland
Southern Historical Publishing Association,
1907