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The manhunt begins
After shooting Lincoln, Booth runs out of Ford's Theatre. On the way out, he has to fight Joseph Stewart, who was the first person to start to chase Booth. The manhunt for Booth has officially began. -
Lincoln is taken to William Petersen's boardinghouse
After Lincoln had been shot, he had to be taken somewhere to be helped. While Dr. Leale searching the street for a safe place, William Petersen invited the group to bring Lincoln into his boarding house. On page 77 of Swanson's novel "Chasing Lincoln's Killer," we read about this invitations when it says, "He stepped outside onto the top of the staircase and raised a candle, 'Bring him in here!' he shouted above the sea of people. 'Bring him in here!' Lincoln had found a safe house at last." -
Stanton begins the hunt for Herold and Booth
After visiting both the crime scenes, Edwin Stanton starts the manhunt for Herold and Booth. Page 89 says, "He continued to activate manhunters in Delaware and Pennsylvania." The minute Stanton had heard of the attacks, he started to organize investigations about the crimes and hunts for the people involved. -
Booth and Herold take hideout in Mudd's farm
After a Booth and Herold had run from Washington, they needed a place to hide. They ended up at Dr. Samuel Mudd's farmhouse and stayed there. Booth and Mudd had known each other from a previous situation which is what brought the two to Mudd's farm. -
President Lincoln dies
April 15, 1865, was the devastating day when the sixteenth president of the United States passed away. On page 102 we read, "Abraham Lincoln took his last breath. His heart stopped beating at 7:22 and 10 seconds." Many doctors tried to help him, but Lincoln still passed. -
Booth and Herold loose Mudd's hospitality
When Mudd found out what Booth and Herold had done, he was angry. He was then angry at the two for putting his family in danger. Instead of betraying the pair and telling the soldiers where they were, Mudd returned to the farm and told them they needed to leave. He then helped them created an escape route Virginia. -
Atzerodt makes a big mistake
When George Atzerodt entered Hezekiah Metz's home on Black Easter, he was asked a question in which his reply put him in serious danger. On pages 122-123 we read, "'Are you the man who killed Abe Lincoln?" The joke must have frozen Atzerodt in his tracks. Atzerodt laughed and said, 'Yes.' He also confirmed for the guests that Seward's throat had been cut, his son's attacked." Atzerodt had just boasted about being part of this plan, which got him in some serious trouble. -
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Booth and Herold meet Cox and Jones
After Booth and Herold leave Mudd's farm, they get lost on their way to Virginia and end up on Captain Cox's porch. There they stayed the night in woods behind Cox's house. Then next morning, Cox sent Thomas Jones to help Booth and Herold develop an escape plan. Booth and Herold would cross the river into Virginia. -
Powell and the Surratts are taken hostage
When Lewis Powell showed up at Mary Surratt's boardinghouse, he was suprised to find a group of soldier at the house too. The soldiers questioned him, and he was caught in a lie. Instead of fighting, Powell went calmly with the soldiers. Mary Surratt and her boarders were taken hostage that night too. On page 133 we read, "The soldiers arrested Powell, Mary Surratt, her daughter, Anna, Lewis Weichmann, and the rest of the boarder." This was the first major breakthrough for the cavalry. -
The day of success
Along with the capture of Powell and Mary Surratt, Sam Arnold, Michael O'Laughlen, and Edman Spangler were all arrested. April 17 was one of the most successful days of the manhunt. -
President Lincoln's funeral
The day of Lincoln's funeral was It was one of the "saddest, most profoundly moving spectacle ever staged in the history of the United States" as described on page 141 of the novel. We also learn that tens of thousands of people attended this funeral and people would wait for hours at a time just to see Lincoln's body. The whole nation mourned the day of Lincoln's funeral. -
Atzeodt is arrested
After making his big mistake, Atzerodt hides out at his cousin's house for four days. Eventually the cavalry finds him and takes him in for questioning. He confessed everything, which gave the cavalry a big lead on finding the rest of the conspirators. -
Booth and Herold cross the Potomac River
This was the day that Booth and Herold crossed the river into Virginia. With the help of Thomas Jones, they were able to get a boat to cross the river, even though Jones had told them where to go, they still got lost in the boat ride overnight. "They landed the boat at the mouth of a creek in Maryland early in the morning, Friday, April 21." They stayed here in Maryland for the day until night time fell again, then headed for Virginia again. -
Jones and Mudd are questioned.
Tired of being questioned, Mudd finally admitted that he had helped Booth. It took quite a bit of questioning, but Mudd finally admitted his aid to Booth. This helped detectives realize that a man as well known as Thomas Jones probably crossed Booth's path at some point. They eventually questioned Jones too. -
Booth and Herold make it to Virgina
In Virginia, Booth and Herold looked for a place to stay. On April 24, Booth finally settled at the Garrett's home for a night while Herold stayed the night a few miles south. Booth stayed there all day April 25, then was joined by Herold once again. It was around now that the Garretts decided to turn in Booth and Herold. Realizing the danger of their presence in his house, John Garrett sent Booth and Herold to stay in his tobacco barn for the night, which is how Garrett trapped the pair. -
The actor's final act
When the union cavalry showed up at Garrett's house, he told them exactly where Booth and Herold were. Even as the end of the manhunt neared, Booth still didn't surrender. Herold did. On page 168 we read, "Herold pleaded with Booth, begging to be released. Finally, Booth relented..." After several hours of waiting for Booth to surrender, the Cavalry decided to burn the barn to force him out. Only then did Booth exit the barn. As Booth emerged from the dust, Boston Corbett shot Booth in the neck. -
Lincoln's Assassin dies
"The soldiers heard one shot. Instantly, Booth dropped the carbine and crumpled to his knees." When Corbett had shot Booth in the neck, it had completely paralyzed him. Booth spent the next few minutes pleading for death because of the great pain he was in. As the soldiers tried to keep Booth alive for questioning, it was soon evident that these minutes would be Booth's last. At last the manhunt for Booth was over. John Wilkes Booth died on April 26, 1865.
