Presidential Box in Ford's Theater Where Lincoln was Assassinated
1861 - 1865
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This image, distributed by the War Photograph and Exhibition Company of Hartford, Connecticut, is entitled "Place Where President Lincoln Was Assassinated." During the late 1800s, the company sold images like this to people interested in lecturing about the Civil War or those who wanted to set up museum exhibits for the public. The original caption for this image reads: This is the private box in Ford's Theater, Washington, where President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth, on the night of April 14, 1865.
On that night, President Lincoln was joined by his wife Mary, Major Henry Rathbone and Major Rathbone's fiancée, Clara Harris, at a staging of the popular comedy Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre on 10th Street on the night of April 14, 1865. Having acted on its stage, John Wilkes Booth knew the ins and outs of the theatre, and he was also quite familiar with the play. He walked up the back stairs, waited for the line that would garner the most laughs (Mr. Trenchard: "Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside out, you sockdologizing old man-trap"), and fired into the back of Lincoln’s head.
The crowd was at first unaware of what had happened, thinking it was a part of the play, until audience members heard Mary's scream from the Presidential box and saw Booth jumping to the stage. As he jumped, he caught his boot spur on the bunting and broke his left shin bone as he landed. Booth then uttered his famous line, "Sic semper tyrannis"—"Thus always to tyrants," the Virginia state motto—before hobbling off the stage and making his escape on horseback.
President Abraham Lincoln died the next morning at 7:22 a.m. on April 15, 1865.
On that night, President Lincoln was joined by his wife Mary, Major Henry Rathbone and Major Rathbone's fiancée, Clara Harris, at a staging of the popular comedy Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre on 10th Street on the night of April 14, 1865. Having acted on its stage, John Wilkes Booth knew the ins and outs of the theatre, and he was also quite familiar with the play. He walked up the back stairs, waited for the line that would garner the most laughs (Mr. Trenchard: "Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside out, you sockdologizing old man-trap"), and fired into the back of Lincoln’s head.
The crowd was at first unaware of what had happened, thinking it was a part of the play, until audience members heard Mary's scream from the Presidential box and saw Booth jumping to the stage. As he jumped, he caught his boot spur on the bunting and broke his left shin bone as he landed. Booth then uttered his famous line, "Sic semper tyrannis"—"Thus always to tyrants," the Virginia state motto—before hobbling off the stage and making his escape on horseback.
President Abraham Lincoln died the next morning at 7:22 a.m. on April 15, 1865.
This primary source comes from the Collection LC: Library of Congress Collection.
National Archives Identifier: 559275
Full Citation: Photograph LC-CC-3404; Place Where President Lincoln Was Assassinated; 1861 - 1865; Stereographs of the Civil War, 1861 - 1865; Collection LC: Library of Congress Collection; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/box-fords-theater, April 28, 2024]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.