Most valuable missing assassination relic

[RJNorton]

(03-20-2014 06:46 AM)Rhatkinson Wrote:  1. The calling card Booth gave to Charles Forbes (assuming he used a card and gave it to Forbes);

Heath, kudos on the way you worded that. Just curious - has anyone ever come across an eyewitness account that corroborated Captain McGowen on this? McGowen said, "He (Booth) took a small pack of visiting-cards from his pocket, selecting one and replacing the others, stood a second, perhaps, with it in his hand, and then showed it to the President's messenger, who was sitting just below him."

Let me emphasize that I have no reason to doubt McGowen's word, but I just have not ever seen anyone else say this. Forbes never said anything about a card, and I do not believe any other eyewitness said anything like this. (Forbes placed himself in the State Box when Booth fired the fatal shot.) I think this is a part of the assassination story where we must rely totally on one person's statement for the card's existence. There is no corroborating account as far as I know.