Did Mrs. Surratt Wear Shoes on the Gallows

[BettyO]

I've wondered about this....I know "The Boys" didn't wear shoes on the death march and on the gallows....but did Mrs. Surratt?

Was she also in her stocking feet as well? Just curious.....

[Jim Garrett]

I thought I saw a reference to her having shoes on. Maybe in an article about the condition of the shoes when she was exhumed.

[BettyO]

Hmmm -- OK..... just curious, but I thought that they always removed the shoes when one was hanged. I know they did with the boys. I have just found an article which refers to her wearing "gaiters...." which is an ankle-high shoe with elastic gores in the sides -- just the sort of boot that a lady wore in the Victorian era....

Odd that they'd take the boy's shoes but let her wear hers....unless it was a consession to her gender. I do know that Lew Powell's feet had swollen to the extent that he could no longer get his boots on....

[LincolnMan]

Those were interesting times. They probably allowed her to retain footwear as a nod to her gender-while the proceeded to hang her.

[Jim Garrett]

Maybe they removed Mrs. Surratts shoes, but buried them with her? Who knows. Powells boots were kept by the Judge Advocates office up until around the turn of the century. They just seems to have disappeared olong with the coat and hat.

[BettyO]

If not given to Eckert (who seemingly died of Alzheimer's) and who supposedly "bricked" up artifacts within the walls of his house, I'll bet the grist of Lew's clothing is "buried/lost" somewhere in the NPS vault as it was recorded that his effects were still within the War Department in the early half of the 20th century....

[Laurie Verge]

I believe that Mrs. Surratt died with her boots (gaiters) on. Since they were in the coffin with her in 1869, I find it hard to believe that someone would have taken the effort in either 1865 or 1867 to slip her shoes back on.

[John Stanton]

Would walking around without shoes give Mrs Surratt reason to complain about Falling - on the gallows?

[Jim Garrett]

What would have been the reasoning for taking off shoes or boots? If it was to prevent them from being thrown off in death throws, then I Mary Surratt had lace up gaiters, that would not have been an issue. Does anyone knoe if it was a custom to have the condemned go shoeless?

[BettyO]

I think it was originally prescribed to avoid shoes being thrown off by the condemned into the "audience".... however, in her case, I think that it was purely a case of gender, perhaps.

[Gene C]

(04-10-2013 08:22 PM)John Stanton Wrote:  Would walking around without shoes give Mrs Surratt reason to complain about Falling - on the gallows?

John, on another thread (and I can't remember which one) we talked about Valerian Wine was given to some of the prisoners to steady their nerves, etc. Mrs Surratt drank some. Nerves, influence of the wine, hot weather, the stability of the scafold, I think all contributed to her feeling unsteady and concern about falling. I have always wondered if her comment about "don't let me fall" had some reference to dont let me die - don't let me fall through the trap door.

Jim, on another thead, (and I can't remember which one) we talked about the sudden jerk when you reached the end of your rope could cause your shoes to come flying off. I remember a newspaper article where a pedestrian was hit by a car and was literally knocked our of her shoes. If Mrs Surratt's shoes were securely tied or fastened above her ankles, this might not be a concern.

[L Verge]

Take Mrs. Surratt's health issues into account also. Mention was made somewhere that she was more dead than alive and had to be nearly carried to the scaffold. Weakness from hemorraging as well as loss of muscle power from being confined in small spaces in 90+ weather were certainly concerns.

[Jim Garrett]

With or without shoes, Mrs. Surratt was the most to be pitied up on the gallows. I can't imagine the tension.

[MaddieM]

Mrs Surratt's feet. They look more like shoes than stockinged feet to me.

[Laurie Verge]

Great photo, Maddie - and they definitely look like the soft leather gaiters that I have seen.