The hunt for John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln, culminated in a dramatic confrontation at Richard Garrett’s farm in Virginia. Just days after the assassination at Ford’s Theatre, Booth and his accomplice David Herold found themselves cornered, leading to Booth’s demise in a burning tobacco barn. This is the story of What Happened To John Wilkes Booth in his final hours.
The Pursuit to Garrett’s Farm
In the early hours of April 26, 1865, approximately 2:00 am, detectives and Union soldiers from the 16th New York Cavalry descended upon the Garrett farm. They had been relentlessly pursuing Lincoln’s assassin, and their search led them to this rural location. Richard Garrett, the farm’s owner, was initially met with rough handling by the soldiers. However, it was Garrett’s own son, Jack, who revealed the fugitives’ hiding place – a tobacco barn on the property.
Standoff at the Barn
The soldiers swiftly surrounded the tobacco barn, demanding the surrender of both John Wilkes Booth and David Herold. Booth, known for his theatrical flair even in dire circumstances, reportedly requested a shootout with the soldiers. This request was promptly denied. Detective Everton Conger then made a decisive move, ordering the soldiers to set the barn ablaze. The intention was to force Booth and Herold out of their hiding place.
As the flames began to engulf the barn, David Herold’s resolve broke. He surrendered and emerged from the barn, only to be immediately branded a coward by Booth. Inside the burning structure, Booth was observed desperately trying to extinguish the flames. Witnesses reported that he appeared to be preparing to use his weapon.
Booth’s Demise
Despite explicit orders to capture Booth alive, Sergeant Boston Corbett, a member of the Union soldiers, took matters into his own hands. He fired a single shot that pierced through John Wilkes Booth’s neck. The bullet tragically severed Booth’s spinal cord, instantly paralyzing him from the neck down.
Soldiers and Conger rushed into the burning barn and pulled the incapacitated Booth from the flames. They attempted to interrogate him, but Booth could barely speak due to his injury. He was dragged to the porch of the Garrett farmhouse where a doctor, summoned to the scene, quickly determined that Booth’s wound was fatal.
In his final moments, John Wilkes Booth uttered a few fragmented sentences. He reportedly asked for his mother to be told that he “died for my country,” clinging to his misguided sense of patriotism. In a poignant final request, Booth asked for his hands to be lifted so he could see them. Gazing at his hands, he softly whispered his last words: “useless, useless.” John Wilkes Booth, the man who assassinated Abraham Lincoln, died at approximately 7:15 am on April 26, 1865.
The Aftermath and Burial
Booth’s body was transported by wagon to the steamship John S. Ide, commencing its journey back to Washington, D.C. Aboard the USS Montauk, an autopsy was performed, officially confirming the deceased as John Wilkes Booth. Under the strict orders of Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, Booth’s remains were buried in secrecy at the Old Arsenal Penitentiary, shrouded in secrecy even in death.
Years later, the Booth family persistently petitioned for the right to claim their relative’s body. Their request was eventually granted in 1869 by President Andrew Johnson. John Wilkes Booth was finally laid to rest in the Booth family plot at Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland. However, in a final act of historical ambiguity, his grave remains unmarked to this day, leaving a lingering question mark on the final chapter of the Lincoln assassination saga.
