Thanks, Reignette! Feeding the teacher was common here, too, but I've never before heard of the special appreciation of apples.

Could it be a result of most families having an apple tree in their backyard in the good old days?

In the city where I live l, lots of apple trees and other fruit bearing trees were planted everywhere in public space (along streets, in parks) after WWII for the support of the people as most of the city had been destroyed. Now it's mostly asylum seekers that harvest.

Although this question does not deal directly with Lincoln's assassination I still think it's probably the nearest (topic-wise) thread to put it in. I got the idea for the question from articles Dave Taylor once wrote on his site.

What 23-year-old man was described as follows?

height 5' 7 inches, weight 123 pounds; hair and mustache, black; eyes, dark brown; teeth, good; pistol mark on right side of forehead under hair. The cause of the pistol mark was reported to be the accidental discharge of a pistol.

Sam Arnold?

Concerning apple trees and fruit trees in general, I live on a street with many Sears kit houses built in the 1920s. When the folks building such a house completed it, a Sears rep would come by and plant a little fruit tree in front of the new house. Only a few still remain on our street as they were planted very close to the road. This time of year they bloom and we look forward to seeing that.

The tree in our yard is long gone, so we planted a dogwood a little closer to our house.

--Jim

Lafayette Baker ?

(05-19-2015 10:46 AM)J. Beckert Wrote:  Sam Arnold?

Excellent guesses, Joe and Gene, but it's not Arnold.

Hint #1: Joe Beckert posted a comment on BoothieBarn when Dave Taylor wrote two articles about the man and the incident he was involved in.

Hint #1.5: The incident this man was involved in occurred in the years after the Lincoln assassination.

Dr. Tumblety?

Laurie, just like Joe and Gene, that is an excellent guess. But it's not him.

Hint #1.75: The man spent some time confined in the Northern Illinois Hospital and Asylum for the Insane (name later changed to the Elgin Insane Hospital).

My other guess was going to be Boston Corbett, but I don't remember that he was confined in Illinois - thought Kansas?

That is certainly a logical guess, but it's not him. The Surratt Courier once carried a lengthy article about this man and the incident.

Ah Ha! You made me search on this one, Mr. Norton, but I believe I have the right answer now. Mark Gray, the man who made the attempt on Edwin Booth's life years later in McVicker's Theatre in Chicago.

Brilliant, Laurie! You are correct! Regarding the hints I gave, Joe Beckert's comment is here. Carolyn and Rich also posted comments there. And Dave told the whole story here.

The Surratt Courier carried a lengthy article on the topic in the March 2007 edition. It was written by Charles Becker and was entitled "Assassinating Booth."

Laurie, you win one free ticket to any show of your choice at the McVicker's Theatre.