Mudd Info Needed

[Laurie Verge]

This post is specifically for Bob Summers, but I am placing it here rather than in a personal e-mail to him so that we can all be edumacated with his response:

Someone on the Surratt Booth Tour this past Saturday noticed that a tent and American flag have been placed near the far wood line behind the Mudd House. When queried, the guide indicated that it was where they think the "occupying troops" were camped during the time that Mrs. Mudd was under house arrest. One of my staff members on the tour asked me today about those troops, and I admitted that I knew very little about unit(s), numbers, length of time they were there, etc. All I know is that they did damage around the farm.

I spent time this afternoon at work (don't tell my bosses) searching your wonderful website, but didn't find that info. Can you fill us in on the points mentioned above?

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BTW to all readers: I do know how to spell "educated!" However, one of my mentors in my journey through Lincoln assassination history was John C. Brennan. He was a wonderful wordsmith, kept an open dictionary on a library stand in his living room, and delighted in proofreading people's work. However, he also liked to throw in colloquialisms every now and then to amuse his audience. "Edumacation" was one of his favorite terms. I have retained its usage in memory of John John.

[LincolnMan]

Makes me laugh to think how many folks today would not have known the word was incorrect.

[L Verge]

Sorry to say, Bill, you are quite right. And, I wonder how you would spell it when texting??? I'm still recovering from learning that cursive (known as handwriting in my youth) will no longer be taught.

[LincolnMan]

Laurie: I had just recently heard that myself. I'm shocked. My reaction is: "You've got to be kidding!"

[Dawn E Foster]

Very sad ...

(wonder how much longer before I stop teaching my kindergartners to write their ABC's?)

[bob_summers]

Laurie, I believe those soldiers were part of the 8th Illinois Volunteers. I have a couple of references for you:

Silas Wesson's account here

and

Quartermaster General report here

Soldiers of the 22nd Regiment USCT passed by the Mudd farm looking for Booth, but I don't believe they camped there.

Nettie Mudd's book has an account of the soldiers at the farm on pages 18-19. You can download a searchable pdf of Nettie's book here.

[Laurie Verge]

Thanks so much for the help. I especially enjoyed reading most of Silas Wesson's diary from the point where they get into the Washington environs of Virginia and the notes on Mosby. The Gray Ghost appears to have done a number on the 16th NY Cavalry from time to time -- the same unit that surrounded Garrett's barn.

As for Nettie Mudd's book, it has been years since I read it. Her description of the soldiers, however, has them camping on a hillside near the house. What is being interpreted there now, puts the camp at the bottom of a slight slope that ends up very near the edges of Zekiah Swamp. That was one of the things that intrigued me when the description was given to me. I just could not imagine troops putting themselves that close to a low, swampy area.

I also learned from Nettie's pages that William Wood, superintendent of Old Capitol Prison, was actually stationed at the Mudd home for awhile during this period and headquartered himself and several other officers in the home.

Wood, himself, is an interesting character. Joan Chaconas did a bit of research on him and the Old Capitol for a talk at our conference a few years ago. I guess I was surprised to learn that he was at the Mudds around the same time that Mrs. Surratt and Dr. Mudd were "residents" at his prison. Wood appears to have ingratiated himself with Southern Marylanders during the war (possibly as a spy). He was friends with Zadock Jenkins, Mary's older brother, and I believe there are references to him trying to gain better prison treatment for Mary.

[bob_summers]

Laurie, Woods' men were not only stationed at Dr. Mudd's farm, they slept in Booth's bed. He said "My men Kirby & Allen slept last night in the bed used by Booth when his leg was bandaged." See bottom of page here.

[Laurie Verge]

I enjoyed reading both of Wood's reports from April 23, 1865, to Major Turner. My ears perked up when I hit the sentence, "No doubt but that Booth broke one of the bones in his legs in the jump on the stage of the theatre immediately after the murder." My mind was screaming, "Yes, I love you!" because I happen to stand by the old story of where Booth broke his leg.

In the second report, I held my breath when Wood mentioned the possibility of the horse's mishap. But he then flatly stated that he was standing by his first report on the break. Whew...

However, we know that the horse falling story originated supposedly when Booth arrived at Mudd's house and that that was the story relayed to the troops who first investigated the Mudds. Where and when were the authorities aware of the story that the break happened at Ford's? Wood obviously knew that story on April 23. There's a timing question here in my mind that has not been adequately addressed.

The info on the two troopers sleeping in the same bed that Booth had used is a neat touch to the story. Does anyone in the Mudd family know what happened to that bed?

[J. Beckert]

I don't want to side track anyone who knows what happened to the bed, (the pictures of the bed in the 20th. century photo in Kauffman's new book doesn't match the beds in the period photo), but didn't Booth tell Lloyd the horse roll story also?

[RJNorton]

Hi Joe. Yes, you are correct. Mike Kauffman wrote an article for Blue & Gray magazine in June, 1990, titled "Booth's Escape Route: Lincoln's Assassin on the Run." In the article Mike lists all the reasons he feels Booth's broken leg resulted from the horse stumbling and falling, and he lists John Lloyd as one of the people Booth told this to.

[Dave Taylor]

When I went on the BERT in September, I had this question on my mind. Since the Mudd House is selling Kauffman's book, I opened it up and asked a gentleman there about the descrepancy. He told me that the bed upstairs is the same one Booth slept in, but that the headboard was not original. I'm not sure about how beds were constructed back then, but wouldn't the headboard of a rope bed be more or less permanently attached to the frame?

[bob_summers]

I don't have any information about the bed, although the room Booth slept in is the same room my mother lived in growing up on the Mudd farm. I suppose the bed is one of the many things I never thought to ask her about.

Regarding Booth's horse, Thomas Davis, a worker at Dr. Mudd's farm, who took care of horses, was taken along with Dr. Mudd to Carroll Prison, where he was interviewed on April 29th. Davis said of Booth's horse: "One was a roan horse… a mark about the saddle where he had been hurt; his shoulder was swelled up right smart… the swelling of the shoulder was fresh…"

Fresh injury to a horse causing a broken leg to a man? Could be. See the prison interview here.

[Laurie Verge]

Somebody pull out The Evidence book and verify that Lloyd ever testified that. Other than Kauffman, I don't ever remember anyone else claiming it. Kauffman also says that Booth told about a dozen people that he had broken his leg from his horse falling. However, I have never seen his citations for that (they are not in the 1990 article, and in American Brutus he writes only of Booth asking for nearby medical help while speaking with Lloyd) -- and I even question that Booth saw a dozen people on his escape long enough to chat about where he broke his leg.

As you can tell, this theory hits a sore spot with me. After nearly a quarter-century of having to debate it with people, I have finally decided that my stance is that the question is MOOT. Both arguments lack satisfactory documentation; however, Booth's diary places the break as occurring before he passed any pickets (the first were at the Navy Yard Bridge) -- that's a pretty good primary source. Yes, I think he was theatrical in expressing his thoughts in the so-called diary, but I also think he was basically truthful albeit boastful.

I also contend that where and how the leg was broken makes very little difference in the big picture of the assassination. Some people retort that he would not have gone to Mudd's if he didn't have a broken leg.

I retort that my personal opinion is that Mudd's was already planned as the first stopping point because of its distance from D.C. (30 miles), its location off the beaten track, the fact that it was nearing daylight and they needed to stay hidden, Mudd was a known supporter of Booth's original plans and had entertained the actor previously and introduced him to Surratt and Thomas Harbin (a chief Confederate agent), George Atzerodt's confession found by Joan Chaconas speaks of supplies and provisions being sent to Mudd's as part of the original kidnap plot, and also based on my strictly personal belief that Davey Herold had been to Dr. Mudd's on April 12 or 13 to alert him that something was still planned.

The "evidence" of the horse having an injured foreleg does not necessarily mean proof of its falling, to me. I was raised on paved Southern Maryland roads with no shoulders. Swerve too far to the right and bushes and brambles could scratch your car in 1965. In 1865, it was a dirt road with even tree branches hanging over it. A good swipe with one of those could have injured the horse, but not Booth's leg. As for the report of mud on Booth's clothing, most horsemen expect that and it's the reason why tailors created "dusters" for men to wear over their clothing while on horseback. Booth obviously did not make clothing plans for his escape...

As I warned, twenty-five years of this theory has made me grumpy. I often worry that, in our eagerness to find something new about the Lincoln assassination, we start to accept things that are purely speculative.

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Dave - Ask Lindsey to examine the rope bed in the Surratt travelers' bedroom tomorrow to see if the headboard could be detached without damaging the rest of the bed. Ours is completely original to the time period except for the new roping.

Also, I believe the only photo of the bed at Mudd's was the one taken by Oldroyd about 35 years after the assassination. The first time I saw that photo, the headboard reminded me of two in our family home (one in my grandmother's room and another in one of the guest rooms). Both of those beds were bought by my family members and never left the house. The first, which more closely resembles the Mudd bed, dates to ca. 1875, when our house was remodeled. The second bed dates to the 1890s.

My point is that I'm not even sure that the bed in Oldroyd's photo dates to 1865, but Mrs. Mudd is the provenance so I better hush.

[BettyO]

Let me look this up, Laurie. The "injury" on the roan, Charley, was NOT due to a fall, but from a saddle rubbing his shoulder. Charley was a "ladies' horse", meaning that he was usually saddled with a side saddle for ladies to ride. Side saddles have a larger "skirt"; thus the side saddle had rubbed his shoulder, causing an injury. It was not due to a fall.... I have this in my file and will look it up. I think the testimony was given by Fletcher at the 1867 Surratt trial.