 Dr. Rudy H. Leverett wrote "The Legend of the Free State of Jones" (University of Mississippi Press, 1984, reprinted 2009), the first 20th-century book-length academic study of events in Jones County before and during the Civil War.The great-grandson of Major Amos McLemore, who was allegedly assassinated by Knight, Leverett argues that the Knight Company's actions did not represent most residents of Jones County.He provides evidence that a majority were loyal to the Confederacy, and concludes that Jones County never seceded from the Confederacy.