Thomas Harbin

[Rick Smith]

Anita,

I believe that both Jones and Harbin knew John Surratt. Surratt would have more than likely crossed the Potomac under the care of Jones while working as a courier. Jones' maintained one of several crossing points, so Surratt certainly could have crossed at others also.

Remember, the Harbin House Hotel, which was also a post office, was just 6 miles from Surrattsville and Harbin had been the census taker for those portions of PG County in 1860 and would have met the Surratts then if not before. His work as a census enumerator would have given him important contacts with many people which may have been of use during the war years.

If memory serves me, Harbin and Surratt had a meeting at Port Tobacco in the early part of 1865, some time in January, I believe, and it is possible that Harbin introduced Surratt to George Adterodt at this time.

I do not have a link to the interview which Harbin gave to Townsend, but Bill Richter may have it. We used the interview as the basis of our Harbin book. It is from the Cincinnati Enquirer, April 18, 1892.

I will try to remember to take a photo of the ballast stones arranged in my dawn redwood grove and post it later.

Rick

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Forgot to add that other material we used in our book on Harbin is from:

“A Hotel Clerk with a History,” Chicago Hotel Reporter (November --, 1885).