Maddox

Chris Maddox

Mr. McDonald

Late History MWF 2:30

15 November 2016

Annotated Bibliography on Abraham Lincolns Death

Jost, Francois. "John Wilkes Booth and Abraham Lincoln: The Reenactment of a Murder." MLN
93 (April, 1978): 503-505

On April 14, 1865 President Lincoln woke up awaiting word from North Carolina and if they
have surrendered to the Union. At 11 that morning the President held a meeting with General
Grant and some of President Lincolns cabinet members. After the meeting General Grant
informed the president that him and his wife couldnt attend the play they were planning on
going to that night. Although Grant and wife would attend, Lincoln was still planning on going
with his wife and Major Henry Rathbone and his fiance. Although people close to Lincoln
advised him not to go, fearing Confederate rebels would try to assassinate him, Lincoln denied
their request. President Lincoln and his wife arrived late and was enjoying the play in the
presidential suit. Abraham Lincolns body guard, who was supposed to be guarding the entrance
of the suit, left his post and went across the street to a bar. While he was away John Wilkes
Booth entered the suit and shot the President in the back of the head. After shooting the
President, John Wilkes Booth escaped the theatre through the back exit. President Lincoln was
rushed across the street to the Petersons house where surgeons announced that he would not
survive. Lincoln laid on a bed slowly dying with his wife, son, and friends next to his bed. People
around the house became overwhelmed with grief after hearing Abraham Lincoln would not
survive. On April 15, 1865 at 7:22 a.m. President Lincoln died.

Markel, Howard. "The Tragic Final Hours of Abraham Lincoln." PBS. (April, 2015)
.
Less than a week after Robert E. Lee surrendered to the Union arm, President woke up the
morning of April 14, 1865 in a surprisingly good mood. The President and the first lady decided
to celebrate by attending a comedy at Fords theatre called Our American Cousin. To Lincolns
surprise, his guest, Gen. Grant informed Lincoln that he could not attend the play. Although
with Grants cancellation, President Lincoln and his while attended the play. During the play,
Lincolns bodyguard left his post. While he was away, actor John Wilks Booth entered the
Presidents suit and shot the President in the head. John Wilks Booth escaped the theatre but
while leaving the scene, he broke his ankle. Abraham Lincoln was rushed across the street
where the doctors tried their best to save him. Sadly, there was nothing the doctors could do to
save the Presidents life. Abraham Lincoln died on April 15, 1865 at 7:22 a.m. The news of the
Presidents death devastated the country. Mr. Lincolns body was then put in a casket and placed
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on a train where it traveled around the country as people gathered around to honor the
president and celebrate his life.

O'Reilly, Bill, and Martin Dugard. Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination That Changed
America Forever. New York: Henry Holt & Co., 2011.

Bill OReilly and Martin Dugard begin the book by describing the battles that went on during the
Civil War and the planning that both the Union and Confederate states drew up, trying to help
themselves win the war. The authors talked about how awful the battles were and how both
sides really wanted to win. Also how the Confederate army could not survive long enough an
eventually had to surrender to the Union. Although after the war ended, the Confederate states
still didnt want to stop fighting. This caused famous actor John Wilkes Booth, who was a
Confederate sympathizer and hated the Northern states with a passion to seek revenge against
them. John Wilkes Booth planned with others to kidnap the President until the Confederacy
was rebuilt. Johns hatred for Abraham Lincoln grew to the point to were kidnapping the
President wouldnt do justice. He then decided to kill President Lincoln, Andrew Johnson,
William Seward, and Ulysses S. Grant. Booths needed all of his men to execute their orders to
successfully kill all of their targets. Although John Wilkes Booth was the only one to successfully
kill his target. Ulysses S. Grant did not attend the theatre with Lincoln keeping him safe, William
Seward survived a knife attack by Booths partner, and the one to kill Andrew Johnson got to
drunk and didnt attack the Vice President. Booth was able to escape and stay on the run for six
days and arrived in Virginia where he was shot and killed by police in a barn. Although John
Wilkes Booth got revenge against President Lincoln and felt he did the Confederate states a
favor, the whole country was devastated by the news of Abraham Lincolns death. The absence
of Abraham Lincoln did not stop his plans to bring the United States back together again.

Steers, Edward. Blood on the Moon: The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Lexington: The
University Press of Kentucky. Paizo Publishing, 2001.

In this Book, author Edward Steers Jr. researched what really happen the night of April 14, 1865
and who was behind the killing. The author describes that John Wilkes Booth was not the only
person the planned and attempted to kill President Lincoln that night. Not only John Wilkes
Booth but Dr. Samuel Alexander Mudd and many others were involved in killing Abraham
Lincoln. While planning the assassination, John Wilkes Booth was communicated with members
of the Confederate underground who help John execute the killing of President Lincoln and
Johns escape from the theatre and staying on the run afterwards. Edward Steers talks about
how without the help of other John Wilkes Booth would not be able to kill Abe Lincoln and/or
escape from the theatre. Other theories of who was involved in the killing and what happened
to John Wilkes Booth were talked about in the book. Theories such as John Wilkes Booth did
not die in the barn fire and that Dr. Samuel Mudd played a key role in killing the President, are
topics that are talked about in this book.