Louis Weichmann

[Rsmyth]

Louis Weichmann was a pivotal character in the Lincoln assassination. He was privy, willingly or not, to comings and goings at Mary Surratt’s boarding house in Washington. Louis’s testimony at the conspirator trial probably secured the guilty verdict for his friend, confidant and landlord. There is speculation that while living in Mary’s home Louis had “a thing” for Mrs. Surratt’s daughter Anna. As far as we know, Anna was not interested in Louis as a suitor. But this post is about another Anna in Louis’s life, Anna Johnson and Anna’s final resting place.
After the trial of the conspirators Louis Weichmann moved back to the town where he grew up, Philadelphia. He had gone to high school in Philly and his father, a tailor, still lived there. Weichmann was appointed to a position of clerk in the Philadelphia Custom House through the efforts of Secretary of War Edwin Stanton and government prosecutor Joseph Holt. He did not hold this job for very long. He was relieved of the position in November 1866. When Ulysses Grant became president in1869 Louis got his position back.
Shortly after he was rehired he married Anna Johnson of Philadelphia at Grace Episcopal Church on October 25th 1870. Louis was 28 years old and Anna listed her age as 32 although her death certificate says she was born in 1834 which would have made her 36. Perhaps the discrepancy was just a typographical error or perhaps Anna lied about her age. We will never know.
What we may also never know is how they met or what attracted them to each other. Did Anna know of Louis’s background and that he was despised by a great many people? What did Louis tell Anna of his time in Washington and the trial that resulted in the death of Mary Surratt? Those discussions if recorded in a diary or letters would be invaluable to researchers of the conspirator’s trial.
It does not appear that Anna had been previously married. She was still going by the family name of Johnson when she married Louis. Her father was Samuel and her mother was Elizabeth Wallace. Born in Philadelphia, it is possible that her whole life was passed in that city. On her death certificate under trade, profession or particular kind of work, it is filled in as “none.” Could Anna’s family have had money? Doubtful since after Louis moved out ten years later, Anna was reduced to taking in boarders. The couple had no children.
In 1886 Louis lost his job again and moved to Anderson, Indiana where he had family and started a business school. He died in 1902 in that city and is buried there. Anna lived another 18 years before passing away in the city of her birth on June 21, 1920. She died of chronic Myocarditis which is an infection of the heart brought on by virus. She was 86 years old. Anna and Louis were never divorced.
Her body was taken by undertaker Joseph Foff and brought to Monument Cemetery for burial. Anna was interred on June 23rd 1920 in section “C”, lot 355, grave 1S.
Monument Cemetery was located at North Broad and Berks Streets in Philadelphia. Occupying seven acres at the time of the last burial in 1929 the cemetery contained 28,000 graves. Monument, one of Philadelphia’s Victorian cemeteries fell into disrepair and by the 1950’s Temple University which was directly across the street wanted the property for a parking lot and sports practice field. In 1956 Temple took possession of the land and began moving the bodies. Temple University made contact with about 400 families of which only about 200 had their loved ones and markers removed to the location of their choice. The rest would be relocated to Lawnview Cemetery in Rockledge minus any makers.
The headstones and monuments were dumped in the Delaware River to be used as foundation for the Betsy Ross Bridge connecting Pennsylvania to New Jersey which was completed in 1976.
At low tide one can walk along a ½ mile trail through an industrial area below the Pennsylvania side of the bridge and see grave markers sticking up out of the water. Names, dates and epitaphs are plainly visible on the stones.
Along with almost 28,000 other bodies, Anna’s remains were buried in the Susquehanna Lawn area of the cemetery. She occupies Section “C”, lot 355 on June 25th 1956. The remains brought from Monument are buried in an area the size of a few football fields. The markers are under 4 inches of dirt and grass and not visible. We spent two hours with the assistance of a cemetery worker armed with a shovel and probing rod in uncovering the Johnson plaque. This bronze nameplate rests on top of Anna’s body along with whom is presumed to be her father Samuel Johnson and two other Johnson’s Maria L. Johnson and Sarah Johnson. The relationship between Maria, Sarah and the rest of the family is unknown as is what happened to Samuel’s wife, Elizabeth.
Anna Johnson Weichmann, a woman a few steps removed from the Lincoln assassination, married to a pivotal witness to the comings and goings of Booth, John Surratt ant others, rests in a cemetery in the north east suburbs of Philadelphia.