John Wilkes Booth
By: Hayden Trees and Hannah Tharp
Early Years
Born on May 10th, 1838 in Bel Air, MD. Before, during and after the Civil War he worked as an American stage actor. One month before Abraham was elected, John Wilkes Booth accidentally shot himself with his co-star's pistol. When he moved to Virginia it was only because of his acting career.
Contribution to The Civil War
He supported slavery, as at the time he was a Marylander. He enlisted in the Richmond Militia. He witnessed John Brown's hanging. He was under Martial Law during Civil War. He decided not to join the Confederate War, and decided to stay with the acting career as he had promised his mother. In 1863, the president and Mrs. Lincoln this was the only time they saw Booth perform.
Life After Civil War
After the Civil War, he assassinated Abraham Lincoln. He died on April 26, 1865. It was 12 day man hunt for him, and in the end was was trapped down by Union soldiers. He conspired to kidnap Lincoln and use him as a bargain to free the Confederate prisoners but ended up killing him.
Interesting Facts
On May 1864, Booth invested in a oil company but after no immediate profit he backed out after losing most of his savings. Because of this, he went into debt.
He had a secret fiance, Lucy Hale, who was the daughter of an abolitionist.
He's the 9th of ten children.
The oldest of his brothers were Junius Junior and Edwin. These two also happened to be actors, just like their father.
He became known for his dark, mysterious good looks.