TOM KNIGHT
The Quest for Fugitive Slave Ancestors

Slave Era: Knights in Jones Co. Mississippi

• Tom Knight's Story: Oral history
• Newton Knight Owned No Slaves: How to deal with the hard blow of conflicting facts
• Jones Co. Slavery: Be brave enough to challenge popular "fact"

After the Escape: Knights in North Carolina

• Black Families of Edgecombe: Broadening the search to reconstruct the past

Migration Back to MS: Knights in Bolivar Co. Mississippi

• 1910 Bolivar Co. Knight Family

Summary: Knight Family History

Tom Knight's Story

"Tom Knight was a slave on the Newton Knight Plantation in Soso, MS. He had escaped, and took his wife with him. They had to hide in caves along the way. The conditions were so bad, Tom's wife lost a few of her toes. They finally made it to North Carolina where they settled and had several children."

Comments
It is a common misconception that elders hold a monopoly on good historical information. I have learned that not only should you speak with elders, but generally anyone over the age of 20 will do. These younger folks may have been close to someone who just passed away, done some genealogical digging of their own once and want to share, or heard a family tale that no one else seems to remember. Case in point, my third cousin was the one who told me the story about Tom Knight. Also, my peers have been a very effective link between myself and elders whom I am not very familiar with. Talking through peers is a nice way to "warm up to" some elders before speaking with them directly.

"Newton Knight Owned No Slaves"

Comments
After contacting some Knight genealogists, to my dismay I was informed that Newton Knight owned neither slaves nor a plantation. I was beginning to have serious doubts about Tom's awe-inspiring story. Although disheartening, this conflict in tales taught me a valuable lesson...to carefully trace your lineage and never jump to conclusions. Despite the popular history, I will accept Tom's story as valid until I find proof to the contrary. Listed below are documents and data that I have compiled in order to unveil the slave history of Jones Co., MS.

Investigating the Slave History of Jones Co.

My Data

• 1860 Jones Co. Slave Schedule
• Jones Co. Slave Schedule Cross-Referenced to Land Patents
• Jones Co. 1870 Census: All the black/mulatto residents of Jones Co., some still in white households
• Slaves in Jones & Covington Co.s MS: slave names from wills, estate records and deeds, including a study of Knight (and related surname) slave whereabouts in relation to inheritances and migrations of the slave-holders.

Comments
Since direct research of Newton Knight left me empty-handed, I set out to gather names of plantations in Jones Co. However, several Jones Co. residents informed me that "Jones Co. had no plantations" and "The people were too poor to afford slaves." Even after hearing this and reading the legend of the "Free State of Jones", I just didn't buy it. I had transcribed the Jones Co. Slave census myself and there were over 900 slaves listed.

Investigating Black Families of Edgecombe, NC

My Data

• Slaves in Edgcombe Co. NC: slave names from wills, estate records and deeds, including a study of Knight (and related surname) slave whereabouts in relation to inheritances and migrations of the slave-holders.
• 1720-1800 Edgecombe Co., NC Black KNIGHTs

Comments
Grandma Abbie's Social Security Application states that she was born in NC, and that her parents names were Tom Knight and Cora (maiden name unknown). The 1870 Index of Black Heads of Household revealed a Thomas Knight living in Edgecombe, NC. His wife's name was Cora. I still need to find early historical records pertaining to my NC Knight family. I haven't been able to get any specific information on my Knight family in Edgecombe, so I am expanding my search to include all Black families in that area.

daughter (?) Maggie Knight (1869/NC - ????)
Born - Edgecombe Co., NC
daughter Abbie Knight MARTIN (1877/NC - 1972/MO)
Born - NC
Married - Dock Martin, March 11, 1899; Sharkey Co. MS
Died - St. Louis, MO
daughter Mary Etta Knight (1886/NC - ????)
Born - NC
son John "Uncle JK" Knight (1887/NC - ca.1950/MO)
Born - NC
Married - Gertrude Greathouse
Died - St. Louis, MO
granddaughter Edna SCOTT (1890/NC - ????)
Born - NC
Widowed in 1910; maiden name unknown