John Wilkes Booth's Weapons

JOHN WILKES BOOTH'S DERRINGER AND KNIFE

Source of Photograph: FBI Firearms-Toolmarks Unit

Source of Photograph: FBI Firearms-Toolmarks Unit
John Wilkes Booth shot President Lincoln in the back of the head near the left ear with this single-shot .44 caliber derringer. It was manufactured by Henry Deringer of Philadelphia and so marked. It is about 6 inches long with a 2 1/2-inch barrel. Its weight is only 8 ounces. The trigger and mountings were made of German silver, and there was a small box in the butt of the gun for an extra percussion cap. William T. Kent found the derringer on the floor of the State Box at Ford's Theatre after the assassination. Today it's in the newly renovated Ford's Theatre Museum.

National Park Service Photograph This is the knife used by John Wilkes Booth to stab Major Henry Rathbone.

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