Why was Booth admitted into the presidential box?

[John Fazio]

(04-22-2015 02:06 PM)RJNorton Wrote:  The Lincoln assassination is full of material that cannot always be 100% verified. I think Forbes' presence, or lack of it, is one of these cases - we just have to (in our own minds) go by what we see as the weight of the evidence. And IMO the weight of the evidence indicates Forbes was the man seated outside the passageway to the State Box. I am not 100% certain of this, but that is my belief. I do believe there was some sort of "communication" between Booth and Forbes prior to Booth's entry, but I am not sure of the exact nature of this.

One of the best discussions I have ever seen of the Forbes' situation is in John Fazio's book titled Decapitating the Union: Jefferson Davis, Judah Benjamin and the Plot to Assassinate Lincoln. Kees, if you have that book, please see pp. 174-183 which covers the Forbes situation in detail with more information/accounts than I think I have seen in any other book. I commend Mr. Fazio for all the research he did on this matter.

Roger:

I greatly appreciate your commendation.

Permit me to contribute to the discussion, because, as you say, it is a subject in which I have a keen interest and one, therefore, that I have read a great deal about.

That Forbes was sitting outside the outer door that led to the passageway is beyond dispute. The evidence for it is more than clear and convincing; it is conclusive.
1. All three scenarios (including Forbes's), as to how the presidential party made its way to the theatre, have Forbes in the carriage.
2. Upon arrival, Forbes assisted them to the sidewalk and then, with Parker and Buckingham, escorted them into the lobby (Good, 9,10). With Parker and the usher James O'Brien, he then escorted them up to their box (Reck 83, Bryan 168, Forbes's Affidavit). He and Parker then took seats outside the outer door (Holzer 105, 106). Though there is a little doubt about this, subsequent facts remove it.
3. Simon P. Hanscom, Editor of the National Republican, wrote in his newspaper the next day that Forbes "was always in the habit of attending the President and Mrs. Lincoln at the theater".
4. It was reported that Forbes visited the presidential party occasionally to see if anyone needed anything. (Briggs)
5. Hanscom delivered an envelope to the President from the White House. He left it with Forbes. (Reck) He wrote in his newspaper the following day that the only person at the door to the box was Forbes. Steers, Bryan and Brooks, among others, all have Forbes in the dress circle in a seat closest to the president's box (Section A, Seat 300).

The more interesting question, because unlike this one it allows for scenarios about which reasonable minds can differ, is why Forbes allowed Booth to pass. I have some thoughts on that too, which I will share with you in another reply inasmuch as it is 4:15 and, like Hindenberg, I need my rest. Let us hope that the consequences of my needing rest are not as dire as those which followed the tired old soldier's need.

John