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Leslie N. Dees
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Leslie N. Dees
Locals pack library for book signing
Stokes McMillan didn’t know what to expect about his first book signing of his newly published book, “One Night of Madness,” at the Attala County Library on Monday afternoon.
The response was overwhelming as hundreds of people turned out to purchase the book and hear McMillan speak about the real-life event that occurred almost 60 years ago.
The book chronicles the murders of the Harris family, a black family, at the hands of Leon Turner and the Whitt brothers, who were white, in late 1949/early 1950.
McMillan came to write the book after looking beyond the photos his father, Billy, had taken for The Star-Herald and reading the clippings that accompanied them in a scrapbook.
“It was the best story that I had ever read,” he said. “This story has to be told. I am going to write this book.”
McMillan, who is a NASA engineer in Texas, began on his first book in 2001 and would get up at 4 a.m. each day before going to work and write.
He made several trips to Kosciusko for research and did countless interviews with those directly connected to the event.
For those in attendance for his talk, he summarized the book and said it was one of the worst crimes ever committed in Attala County.
Turner and the Whitts went to the Harris’ home seeking revenge. They thought the Harris were responsible for putting them in jail.
Lives lost that night were three of Mary Ella and Thomas Harris’ children and two were wounded – Thomas and Mary Ella’s daughter, Verlene. Mary Ella escaped with their youngest child, James, into the night.
James, who now resides in Durant and cares for his mother, was in attendance at the book signing. When he was introduced by McMillan, he received a round of applause.
James said for years when he lived up North, he talked of this story and always wanted someone to write it.
And one day, he got a phone call from McMillan.
“God brought us all together,” he said.
James said his mother did several interviews with McMillan and she was glad to see that the book was being written.
“This was something that she wanted,” James said.
Library officials said this was the largest book signing at the library that they could remember. McMillan also had book signings in Durant, Goodman and Jackson this week.
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