Barry Cauchon Speaks to the Kansas Museum of History

[barryssentials]

Hi all: Barry Cauchon here. Your support for John and my research has always been wonderful. For the benefit of some of the newcomers to the Lincoln Assassination research field, Roger has asked me to briefly share what our research covers in our “Inside the Walls” project. John Elliott and I have been research partners since September 2009 and specialize in the incarceration and punishments of the Lincoln conspirators. Our book (or series of volumes) will focus on this area of research.
John and I bring different skillsets to the table and our interests vary even within our chosen subject. I am a visual person and have spent an incredible amount of time analyzing the details found within period illustrations and photographs (in particular, the Alexander Gardner execution photographs from July 7, 1865) and reviewing first-person, eyewitness accounts. On the other hand, John is a voracious reader and soaks in everything he can find on our subject. Together our individual research styles have complemented one other and greatly benefitted the work we’ve done so far. Of course, it is rare for anyone in this community to be successful without the help and generosity of other like-minded people. We have been blessed to work with many of the best researchers and trailblazers in the field and will always be grateful to them for their friendships.
As I mentioned earlier, my interest and specialization in certain aspects of our research differ from John’s. One example of this began in June, 2009, when I started investigating an artifact found at the Kansas Museum of History in Topeka, KS. It is a three-foot piece of lumber purported to be a section from the crossbeam of the Lincoln conspirators’ scaffold. When I first found out about the artifact, I was skeptical of its authenticity based on some of my very early research. Now, almost four years later, and with the help and cooperation of the folks at the Kansas Museum of History, we are 99.999% sure that the artifact is genuine. Betty Ownsbey was kind enough to mention here that I have been asked to do a series of talks at the museum next month (Feb 2-4, 2013) to show how we came to our conclusions. It should be a lot of fun. The best part for me is that my final talk will be a Remote Learning Session broadcast live to high school students all across the state of Kansas. I originally got into this ‘research business’ because I wanted to do my part in making history interesting for students. Roger is a retired history teacher and still reaches out to students today. He has been an inspiration to me since I’ve known him. I am thrilled to get this opportunity to speak to the students of Kansas and hopefully pique their interest in the Lincoln assassination. I will point out the great work that the research community does and hope to inspire these young people to join our ranks in the future. Have a great day.
Best. Barry