Ocean Springs teacher, musician killed in I-10 crash

OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. (WLOX) - A beloved English teacher at Ocean Springs High School, Kennon Barton, 41, was killed in an early morning crash on I-10 in Jackson County.

The wreck happened just before 1 a.m. Wednesday on westbound I-10 between Escatawpa and Gautier and involved an 18-wheeler.

According to the Mississippi Highway Patrol, both vehicles were traveling west on the interstate. The driver of the semi-truck has not been charged with any crime, and the crash remains under investigation.

Ocean Springs School District is saddened to learn of the passing of beloved OSHS teacher, Mr. Kennon Barton.

Words do not do justice to what Mr. Barton meant to his coworkers and our students. He was truly kind and genuinely cared for every individual that walked our halls. pic.twitter.com/k25kMaL5x8
— Ocean Springs School District (@OSSDGreyhounds) June 7, 2023

Barton taught at the high school level for the last four years, and just last month was named one of Keesler Federal Credit Union’s Impact Educator Award winners for 2023. He’s also the son of former Jackson County Supervisor Manly Barton.

Barton’s reputation as a creative soul is known across the coast from his work as a musician and member of the band “Party at the Moontower.” Back in 2019, WLOX Gulf Coast Weekend talked to Barton about his comic book project, Memory Host 9, which he hoped to eventually turn into a graphic novel. You can watch that full interview below.

As we remember coast teacher and musician Kennon Barton, we wanted to share a profile our Gulf Coast Weekend team did with this creative guy back in 2019.

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