12. Newton’s Grandfather Was A Slave Owner, And Newton Might Have Tried To Hide This Later In Life
According to some sources, Newton Knight was born on November 10, 1829, near the Leaf River in Jones County, Mississippi. These sources come from his niece, Ethel Knight, and his gravestone. His son, Tom Knight, wrote that his father was born in 1830. However, other sources give a different year for Newton’s born date. Also, the time is eight years different from 1829. In a 1900 census, where Newton himself would have given the census taker information, it gives his birth year as 1837. On top of this, there are other census records which provide the year 1837 instead of 1829.
While no one knows for sure why Newton has three birth years, with one being nearly a decade after the first, there are a couple of guesses. First, 1830 is only a year off from 1829 so many people believe this is merely a mistake of Newton’s son, Tom, in the biography. However, the same cannot be stated for Newton consistently giving the census taker the year of 1837. For this, many people believe the Newton was trying to hide who he was. Not because of his past or work in the Civil War but because his grandfather, John “Jackie” Knight had been one of the biggest slave owners in Jones County, Mississippi.