Who is this person?

[AussieMick]

I asked Chatgpt (admittedly not always 100% reliable ... and I suggest this is another occasion when it is wrong ... see end of this Post)

"was lincoln carrying a gun the night he was killed 1865 ?"

Yes. Historical evidence indicates that Abraham Lincoln was carrying a small pistol on the night he was assassinated, Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

When he was shot by John Wilkes Booth at Ford's Theatre on the evening of April 14, 1865, items found on Lincoln's person included:

A small, ivory-handled Derringer pistol.
A pocketknife.
A wallet.
A handkerchief.
A watch.
Other personal papers and belongings.

The pistol was a compact, single-shot pocket weapon, not a military sidearm. There is no evidence that Lincoln attempted to draw or use it during the attack. Booth entered the presidential box from behind and fired a single shot into the back of Lincoln's head at very close range, giving Lincoln essentially no opportunity to react.

Lincoln's personal effects, including the pistol, were inventoried after his death and are preserved as historical artifacts. Some of these items are in the collections of the Library of Congress and the National Park Service, which oversees Ford's Theatre National Historic Site.


BUT .... Grok (x) responded to same question ...
No, Abraham Lincoln was not carrying a gun the night he was assassinated (April 14, 1865) at Ford's Theatre.

biography.com

Historical records of the items found in his pockets and coat after the shooting list everyday personal effects, but no firearm or weapon of any kind. These contents were given to his son Robert Todd Lincoln, kept in the family for decades, and later donated to the Library of Congress (where they remain). They include:

biography.com

Two pairs of eyeglasses (one repaired with string) and a lens polisher/chamois.
A pocketknife (likely used for small repairs, like tightening his glasses).
A gold watch fob.
A white handkerchief monogrammed with “A.”
A brown leather wallet containing a $5 Confederate bill (a souvenir from his recent visit to Richmond) and several newspaper clippings (mostly favorable to Lincoln or related to the war and his policies).

biography.com

No sources from the assassination investigation, autopsy, or contemporary accounts mention Lincoln carrying or using a gun that night. The only weapon involved was the single-shot .44-caliber Philadelphia Deringer pistol used by John Wilkes Booth, which Booth dropped in the presidential box.

fords.org

Lincoln did face threats and had bodyguards at times, but on this occasion he attended the theater with minimal security, and there's no evidence he armed himself personally. The detailed inventory of his belongings underscores how ordinary the evening started before the tragedy. These items are preserved as artifacts and occasionally displayed (e.g., at the Library of Congress or Ford's Theatre exhibits).

So ... even Grok gets it wrong ( Booth also had the knife used to hurt Rathbone)

I then said to Chatgpt "Where do you get the information that he had a derringer?

That's a good question, and it prompted me to double-check.

The claim that Lincoln was carrying a personal derringer is not supported by the best primary evidence. I should not have stated it as fact.

The strongest evidence comes from the inventory of the contents of Lincoln's pockets, which has been preserved by the Library of Congress. The catalog lists:

Two pairs of spectacles
A spectacles case
A lens cleaner
An ivory pocketknife
A watch fob
A linen handkerchief
A wallet containing a Confederate $5 bill and newspaper clippings
A cuff link/button

There is no pistol in the Library of Congress inventory.

The confusion likely comes from the fact that John Wilkes Booth used a small Philadelphia Deringer pistol to assassinate Lincoln. That weapon is well documented and survives today, but it belonged to Booth, not Lincoln.

There are occasional secondary sources, museum displays, or books that mention Lincoln owning or carrying a pistol at various points during his presidency because of assassination threats. However, I have not found a reliable primary source showing that he had one on his person at Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

So the most accurate answer is:

There is solid primary evidence for what was in Lincoln's pockets the night he was shot, and it does not include a firearm.
There is no reliable evidence that Lincoln was carrying a derringer when he was assassinated.

Thanks for asking for the source—that was a useful correction