It is very loosely based on the true life story of Newton Knight, a farm owner who attempted to secede Jones County from Mississippi.

[3] Made by Walter Wanger Productions and Universal Pictures, it was directed by George Marshall and produced by Walter Wanger from a screenplay by Alan Le May, based on the 1942 novel Tap Roots by James H. Street, with additional dialogue by Lionel Wiggam.

The film stars Van Heflin and Susan Hayward with Boris Karloff, Julie London, Whitfield Connor, Ward Bond and Richard Long.

A poor Mississippi farmer who has never owned slaves finds himself conscripted into the Confederate States Army to fight to defend the right of wealthy slaveowners to be able to maintain their grasp on their black property.

[1] On November 18, 2023, Universal remastered Tap Roots in 4K, which was premiered for the first time at The Linda Theatre in Akron, OH during their 75th Anniversary.