Mudd, Surratt and Harbin

[L Verge]

(02-09-2016 06:23 AM)loetar44 Wrote:  Roger,

If Harbin's story is to believed, and in my opinion there is no reason not to believe Harbin, and if GATH is correct in describing Harbin’s recollections, than Harbin already met Booth in October,1864 and November, 1864. Would this imply that the story (generally accepted as true) that Dr. Mudd introduced Harbin (alias “Wilson”) “for the first time” to Booth at the famous Bryantown Tavern meeting on December 18, 1864 is false?


Laurie,

Forrest J. Bowman, Professor of Law, West Virginia University, once wrote in his article “The Curious Case of Dr. Mudd”(1995): “Bennett F. Gwynn, a neighbor of Dr. Mudd, testified that he and his brothers, who were trying to avoid arrest by General Dan Sickles, had slept in the woods behind the Mudd home, on bedclothes provided by the Mudds, and were fed by the Mudds. Gwynn testified he feared arrest because he was a captain in the home guard, a militia unit organized ‘to stand by the State in any disloyal position it might take against the [United States] Government,’and that Dr. Mudd, knowing of his concern over being arrested (and being aware of why Gwynn was concerned, i.e., aware that Gwynn was a member of the Rebel militia), sheltered him. Then Gwynn, under cross-examination, revealed a bit of information that serves to take Dr. Mudd out of the ‘civilian’ class and into the class of ‘enemy soldier,’ so far as the United States government was concerned. He admitted that Dr. Mudd was a member of one of these militia companies.”

If Bennett Gwynn’s testimony is to believed, and in my opinion there is no reason not to believe Gwynn, than Dr. Mudd was indeed a member of the Confederate underground in Charles County and a member of the organized Confederate militia.

Thanks for reminding me of Forrest Bowman! I remember that gentleman very well - an excellent scholar - and thanks for the reminder of that testimony. A good portion of Charles County, Maryland, were members of such militia (but they would never have let you know it). The militia had to be very covert in the first few years of the war because of the amount of Union forces that were sent to occupy the county.

Dr. Mudd was also a member of groups that were basically "slave catchers." Planters and their followers who tried to ensure that runaways and other unaccounted-for-blacks were retrieved. I hope that you have read Ed Steers's excellent His Name Is Still Mudd. I should also add that Bennett Gwynn was a much closer neighbor of Mrs. Surratt, living just about a mile from our tavern and about fifteen miles from Mudd (and in a different county). It's stretching it a bit to have him referred to as a neighbor of Mudd. Of course, in the good old days, we were all neighbors down here - and I mean that sincerely.

BTW: Over the years, we have had a number of visitors at Surratt House who have just come from a tour of the Mudd House. A frequent comment is that they were told there that Dr. Mudd was a Union supporter. We have tried to clarify that it was his cousin, Dr. George Mudd, who was a Unionist, but they insist that their guide said Dr. Samuel Mudd. One of my guides took the tour and confirmed that the guide he had claimed the Union guy was Dr. Sam.

On Saturday, while my grandson and I were reconnoitering the tour route for the conference bus tour on Friday, we stopped at St. Mary's Bryantown to photograph two other tombstones. I noticed that Dr, Mudd's grave is now decorated with a U.S. flag. Given the strong feelings against the victors and their cause that Dr. Sam expressed in letters to a Catholic editor as well as letters home to Frankie, I wonder if he's twirling in that grave because of that flag...?