The gun believed to have been used to kill Emmett Till is now in the hands of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

A news conference will take place at 10 a.m. Thursday, the 70th anniversary of Till’s murder, at the Two Mississippi Museums to announce the donation of the .45-caliber pistol that J.W. Milam is believed to have used to pistol-whip and shoot the Black Chicago youth, who had just turned 14.

It’s the second murder weapon in the department’s possession. The first is the .30-06 rifle used in 1963 to kill Mississippi NAACP leader Medgar Evers, which can be seen at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.

Unlike many stories plucked from history, fascination with the Till case has grown over time, said Dave Tell, author of “Remembering Emmett Till.”

He called the Till

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