Thomas A. Bogar - Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination: The Untold Story of the Actors and Stagehands at Ford’s Theatre

PRAISE FOR

BACKSTAGE

AT THE LINCOLN ASSASSINATION

Dr. Bogars scholarship is original and impeccable. With stunning clarity, this vivid narrative shines a light into the shadows and behind the scenes of the most resonant crime in American history. Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination is an indispensable resource for understanding the width, breadth, and scope of the tragedy at Fords Theatre.

ERIK JENDRESEN, writer and producer of Killing Lincoln and Band of Brothers

Just when we thought there was nothing new to learn about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln at Fords Theatre comes this important book by theater historian Tom Bogar. It brings the actors and actresses of Fords Theatre finallyand fullyto life. In a masterpiece of skillful research and synthesis, Bogar immerses us in one of the most dramatic moments in American history while answering questions we thought were unanswerable. A definitive treatment.

TERRY ALFORD, author of Fortunes Fool: The Biography of John Wilkes Booth and John Wilkes Booth: A Sisters Memoir

Most Lincoln assassination books follow the well-documented trail of Booth into Maryland and Virginia, repeating often-told stories. Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination stays behind at Fords Theatre, giving an old tale a new, fresh focus that other historians missed for the past 150 years.

CLINT JOHNSON, author of A Vast and Fiendish Plot: The Confederate Attack on New York City

Thomas A. Bogars innovative investigation of the traumatic event of April 14, 1865, at Fords Theatre will quickly become an essential study among the plethora of books on Lincolns assassination. This lively and engrossing narrative reveals the impact of the assassination on the forty-six people involved with the theatrical performance that fateful evening. Bogar follows all of them from their activities that day to their deaths, recalling controversies and questions still unanswered. Even the most ardent of Lincoln assassination addicts will find much to savor and learn in this terrific book.

DON B. WILMETH, editor of The Cambridge Guide to American Theatre, co-editor of The Cambridge History of American Theatre, and editor of the series Palgrave Studies in Theatre & Performance History

Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination is a must-read for anyone interested in Lincolns assassination or history in general. Tom Bogar brings to life the many people whom other accounts mention only in passing, if at all. Its difficult to call any Lincoln assassination book uniquethere are over 120 of thembut Bogars book is indeed a unique addition to Lincoln assassination lore.

ROGER NORTON, founder and moderator of the Lincoln Discussion Symposium and the Abraham Lincoln Research Site

Though many books have been written about the Lincoln assassination, many gaps in the story remain. One of the most obvious of these surrounds the people who worked at the scene of the crimethe actors, managers, and stage crew of Fords Theatre in Washington. Being acquainted with, and in some cases close to, the assassin, they were potential suspects in the case. Some were arrested in the aftermath of the shooting, and one was convicted on the strength of divided testimony from his colleagues. They all survived the experience and moved on with their lives. A few continued their careers on the stage, but most faded into oblivion. Now, with the publication of this marvelous book, Professor Bogar has brought those forty-six important characters back into the spotlight. He clears away a century and a half of folklore and mythology and reminds us how even the minor figures have fascinating stories to tell. They were there, they saw it all, and now at last, their stories will be heard. This is long overdue.

MICHAEL KAUFFMAN, author of American Brutus

By uncovering the stories of the largely anonymous actors, managers, and stagehands whose lives were changed forever at Fords Theatre, Tom Bogar has found a fresh and exciting angle on the events of April 1865. This is a fascinating account, and an important piece of research.

DANIEL STASHOWER, author of The Hour of Peril: The Secret Plot to Murder Lincoln before the Civil War

History tells us that the Lincoln assassination was more than the work of lone gunman John Wilkes Booth. Tom Bogar shows us in this revealing and riveting book just how much more. Bogar has fleshed out stunning details involving more than a few suspects who were inside Fords Theatre that fateful nightalong with other never-before-seen primary source material. Highly recommended.

MARC LEEPSON, author of Flag: An American Biography, Saving Monticello, Desperate Engagement, and Lafayette

Copyright 2013 by Thomas A. Bogar

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a review written for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, broadcast, or on a website.

First ebook edition 2013

eISBN 978-1-62157-174-2

The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows:

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Lifes but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more.

MACBETH, Act V, Scene v (Abraham Lincolns favorite Shakespearean play)

CONTENTS

Brink, Catherine KittieEdwins (see below) new fourteen-year-old bride, helped backstage

Brink, Edwin Hunteractor, forty-two, singing in quartet, Union Navy veteran, yet close friend of Booth

Buckingham, John E. Buckdoorkeeper, thirty-seven, Union veteran and Navy Yard worker

Burroughs, Joseph Peanut Johnstreet urchin errand boy, about seventeen, held Booths horse

Byrne, Charles Francisactor, twenty, played small role of DeBoots