The Legend Of John Wilkes Booth

[Dave Taylor]

(01-14-2016 09:11 PM)maharba Wrote:  Yes. I see Richard Baynham Garrett variously claimed to have locks of hair and 'other relics' of Booth. How long was it the man in the barn Boyd/Booth lived after he was backshot, I really wonder too. A couple hours, or even less. And if they really had had and kept "Booth's hair clipping", that would have simplified the search for DNA tests. The touching letter of reply from Edwin Booth, his mother so grateful to have the clipping of "Booth's hair". Yet, Edwin Booth had been sent back trunks full of JWBooth's costumes, and spent a whole day burning them all up. Somehow it doesn't add up.

Pretty much everything in this response is either incorrect or misleading so I just wanted to post a quick retort. I apologize to everyone else for the lack of sources but it's late and I'm getting ready for bed.

1. The Garretts did have locks of Booth's hair. It's well documented and some members of this forum have even held it in their hands. The Garretts also had several other Booth relics such as the pillow he used when he slept in the house the first night and the blood stained porch planks from where he died.

2. Booth lived longer than most books give him credit for. I don't recall the exact time right now but it was close to two hours.

3. Hair can only be used for DNA when there is a root attached to it. The DNA is in the hair follicle and not in the strand itself. Even today I could not go to the barber, have him cut my hair, pick up a clipping and have it DNA tested. Without the root of the hair there is no DNA.

4. Edwin was very grateful to the Garretts for their kindness to his brother. He even bought some of Richard Baynham Garrett's seminary books in appreciation for the part of the lock of hair that the Garretts cut. Richard Baynham wanted to keep a little bit of the lock for himself which has been seen and held by members of this forum as stated. Correspondence between Edwin and Richard Baynham are housed at the Players Club in New York. Kate H. of this forum has seen them first hand.

5. The story about Edwin Booth purposefully burning his brother's theatrical garments has been pretty conclusively proven to be apocryphal. The trunk was accidentally lost when the Winter Garden Theater caught fire.

So, in the end, it actually all adds up perfectly.