Drawing of Booth Body

[Cliff Roberts]

(03-12-2014 11:09 AM)Linda Anderson Wrote:  Hi John,

This may have been covered before but is it possible that Lawrence Gardner was lying to cover up the fact that a photo was actually taken?
That was the story and he was sticking to it.

Also, Seaton Munroe, who was a witness for the military commission trying to establish Booth's identity which was being held below deck, wrote, "The handsome countenance was unmarred by the agony of his lingering death..."

So what did Booth look like on the Montauk anyway? Could his body have changed that quickly?

Hi Linda:

First of all, aside from his own words, there isn't a shred of evidence showing that Lawrence Gardner ever set foot aboard the Montauk, nor is there any evidence proving that Tim O'Sullivan was not Gardner's assistant, both on the Montauk and at the execution. Your theory about Lawrence Gardner's claim is a valid one. Suppose young Gardner was merely repeating what his father told him when he came home without the anticipated photo of Booth, a "cover story" necessary under the stipulations agreed to when Gardner was given the photo assignment. Whether Gardner ever told his son the true story is unknown, but when he spoke to the reporter 26 years later, Lawrence stuck to the story he'd been told, simply inserting himself into the action to add authority to his statements. I'll be discussing this in greater detail later.

Various credible witnesses have stated that Booth's appearance had altered considerably in the 24-plus hours since his death, likely due to normal postmortem changes, exacerbated by his body being bounced around in a wagon for miles over country roads. Add to that the effects of nearly two weeks of living rough, probably in constant pain from his leg fracture. Dr. May's well-documented and oft-quoted description of the way Booth's face appeared, although a bit over-dramatic, is an example.