Assassination

Abraham Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth on the evening of April 14, 1865 at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C.

Lincoln, the First Lady, and their guests (Major Henry Rathbone and his fiancée Clara Harris) were attending a special performance of “Our American Cousin” when Booth entered the President’s balcony box from behind and shot him in the back of the head.

Booth leapt from the balcony and escaped on a horse waiting for him outside the theater. That same night, Booth’s co-conspirators tried unsuccessfully to kill Secretary of State William Seward and Vice President Andrew Johnson. Seward was attacked, but not fatally, and Johnson’s would-be assassin did not carry out his task.

Lincoln, unconscious but still alive, was carried to a boarding house across the street from the theater. Several doctors remained in attendance through the night, but they could do nothing to save the President. At 7:22 a.m. on April 15, Abraham Lincoln died.

A massive manhunt for Booth and his rebel band ensued. On April 25, after nearly two weeks on the run, Booth and one of his co-conspirators, David Herold, were tracked down by Federal Calvary officers at the Northern Virginia home of David Garnett. Herold surrendered, but Booth was shot and killed. In the months that followed, eight of Booth’s co-conspirators were tried and found guilty. Four were hanged.

Samuel C. Parks. Letter to Robert B. Latham. February 27, 1861.
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From the moment he was elected President, Lincoln became the target of death threats and assassination attempts. This letter, exchanged between two of Lincoln’s friends, concerns a plot to kill the President in Baltimore in February, 1861, while Lincoln was traveling to Washington for his inauguration. Alerted by detectives, Lincoln changed his plans and slipped through the city incognito, trading his trademark tall hat for a cap. He was mocked in the press, and would never again heed the advice of counselors who urged him to pay more attention to his personal security.

“The feeling here about Lincoln’s night trip to Washington has changed entirely since it is known that Gen. Scott, Senator Seward, Judge Davis, and Judge Trumbull advised him to do it. If his Inaugural message is only firm and prudent he will be all right...”

Gift of Gail and Stephen Rudin

Ford’s Theater. Playbill. April 14, 1865.
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Gift of Gail and Stephen Rudin

Ford’s Theater, 10th St., Washington, D.C. Stereo view.
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Stereoscopic photographs (stereo views) became popular in the 1850s. The photographer produced two photographs of the same image from slightly different angles. Viewed through a stereoscope, the double photographs appeared to form a single, three-dimensional image.

Gift of Gail and Stephen Rudin

Head-Quarters, Army of the Potomac. General Orders No. 15. April 16, 1865. Announcement of the Death of President Lincoln.
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Gift of Gail and Stephen Rudin

“Crutch Extra!!! Important From Washington. Death of President Lincoln. The Assassin Escapes.” Crutch Weekly Army Hospital Newspaper [U.S. General Hospital, Annapolis, MD, April 15], 1865.
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This broadside was issued to inform sick and wounded Union soldiers at Annapolis of the President’s death. It mentions the initial $10,000 reward offered by General Christopher Augur, which was soon afterwards dramatically increased. The broadside also describes the attack on Secretary of State William Henry Seward, including an erroneous report of the death of his son.

William P. Stein Fund

The Assassination of President Lincoln. Lithograph. Currier & Ives, 1865.
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Contrary to this dramatized depiction of the President’s assassination, Major Henry Rathbone did not see Booth shoot the President.

Susan H. Douglas Collection of Political Americana

The Assassination and History of the Conspiracy: A Complete Digest of the Whole Affair... Cincinnati: J.R. Hawley & Co., 1865.
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The public’s horror and fascination with the details of Lincoln’s assassination prompted publishers to churn out a steady stream of prints and pamphlets on the events of the fateful day.

The Assassination and Death of Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States of America, at Washington, on the 14th of April, 1865. New York: American News Co., 1865.
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Harper’s Weekly. New York, Saturday May 20, 1865.
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Newspapers covered in detail the hunt for those responsible for Lincoln’s death, their arrests, and their trials. This issue of Harper’s Weekly shows the barn where Booth was shot and the house where he died.

Gift of Gail and Stephen Rudin

Alexander Gardner. Cabinet Card Photograph of Lincoln Conspirator George A. Azterodt.
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Alexander Gardner, who was well known for his work photographing the Civil War, was called upon to photograph the conspirators. Shown here is George Atzerodt, who failed in his assignment to assassinate Vice President Andrew Johnson.

Collection of Stephan Loewentheil

Alexander Gardner. Cabinet Card Photograph of Lincoln Conspirator Lewis Powell.
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Lewis Powell (also known as Lewis Paine or Payne) attempted to murder Secretary of State William Seward in his home. Powell stabbed Seward repeatedly with a bowie knife and fled. Seward later recovered from his wounds, but he bore scars on his face for the rest of his life. Both Powell and Atzerodt were hanged on July 7, 1865.

Collection of Stephan Loewentheil

George Alfred Townsend. The Life, Crime, and Capture of John Wilkes Booth, With a Full Sketch of the Conspiracy of Which He Was the Leader... New York: Dick & Fitzgerald [1865].
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