Gun from Emmett Till killing ‘was never hidden’

For decades, this haunted piece of history — the weapon allegedly used to kill Emmett Till — lay in a wooden drawer, gathering dust.

That changed in 2004 when FBI agent Dale Killinger began reinvestigating Till’s lynching.

The longtime owner of the weapon, who asked not to be named for fear of harassment or retribution, said the FBI kept the gun “for a year almost to the day.”

On Thursday, the .45-caliber pistol that J.W. Milam is believed to have used to pistol-whip and shoot the Black Chicago teen became part of the Emmett Till Exhibit at the Mississippi Civil Rights Museum.

In World War II, Milam served as a lieutenant in the Army Air Force and brought back the Ithaca Model M1911-A1 .45-caliber pistol.

Milam and his half-brother, Roy Bryant, abducted Till from his great uncle’s hom