State Box

[RobertLC]

I am new to this forum, but am excited about being here. I would like to start with a couple of questions about the night of the assassination of the President. When Booth shot Abraham Lincoln, by which portal did he exit the State Box? I have attached a Brady photo of the theater that was taken just days after the shooting. Did Booth escape by portal I or portal II? I suspect portal II because portal I would have been a precarious jump and placed him very close to the front edge of the stage, but I have found no solid evidence to support my supposition. Moreover, we know that Dr. Charles Taft was lifted from the stage and thus climbed into the box. This is confirmed by his writings and other eyewitness accounts. Did he enter via portal I or portal II. Again, I suspect portal II because the President was just inside portal I and it would have been very awkward for Taft to enter via that route. I appreciate anyone who can elaborate and clarify these points for me.

[RJNorton]

Welcome to the forum, Robert! I do not believe I have ever seen a specific answer to your question. Mike Kauffman writes that Booth "pushed his way past Mary Lincoln to the front of the box. In one fluid motion he vaulted over the railing to the stage, twelve feet below." If Mike's description is correct then it would probably be Portal I.

Has it been proved conclusively that Booth caught his spur in a Treasury Guards flag, not a United States flag? If so, was the Treasury Guards flag draped over Portal I or Portal II? Does the photo taken after the assassination have the correct placement of the flags? Or were they just guessing the actual flag placements when the photo was taken?

[LincolnMan]

Welcome Robert!
I guess I've always assumed Booth jumped from Portal II. I know there are artist's depictions of the jump that portray him leaping from that Portal. I've thought that after Booth struggled with Rathbone- he was positioned closer to that opening rather than the one where the Lincoln's were. What part of the frame containing Washington's portrait was chipped? That might be a clue as to which opening Booth escaped from.

[J. Beckert]

I vote Portal # 1. It came up here at one time that Mary Lincoln stated she felt Booth brush against her as he went to the rail. Also, the Washington engraving has a very noticable nick on the side of P#1, supposedly made by Booth's spur as he kicked it going over.

Ferguson (dress circle) stated the next day that he saw Booth catch the Treasury Guards flag and pull it down and a piece if it was on his spur as he hit the stage. He also stated it was displayed below the engraving and was not on a staff. He described it as a "State Flag".

Ferguson (the actor) stated he checked the spot were Booth landed and found the carpet torn and a small semi-circular indentation from the spur. I think that may be visible in the Brady photo directly beneath P#1.

[LincolnMan]

If it was Portal 1, then the struggle was in very close quarters indeed. That might mean that Rathbone approached Booth to initiate the interchange between them. I can only imagine Mary Lincoln in her spot with all of that commotion going on- so close that Booth brushes up against her. There was also the smoke factor - as discharged from the weapon- the view in the box probably was not real clear.

[davg2000]

Welcome to the forum, Robert! I do not believe I have ever seen a specific answer to your question. Mike Kauffman writes that Booth "pushed his way past Mary Lincoln to the front of the box. In one fluid motion he vaulted over the railing to the stage, twelve feet below." If Mike's description is correct then it would probably be Portal I.

Has it been proved conclusively that Booth caught his spur in a Treasury Guards flag, not a United States flag? If so, was the Treasury Guards flag draped over Portal I or Portal II? Or was it in the middle by the picture? Does the photo taken after the assassination have the correct placement of the flags? Or were they just guessing the actual flag placements when the photo was taken?

When I was a child, I was taught that Booth caught his right spur in the U.S. flag (bunting?) draped in front of the box. (This, I was told, was "Old Glory's revenge.") But I haven't thought that for years. Booth hadn't the time necessary to be able sit on the rail of the box and jump the twelve feet, which I think is the only scenario which allows his spur to catch in the U.S. flag. It's much easier to envision Kauffman's idea in which the acrobatic Booth, moving in front of Mary Lincoln, places one or both hands on the rail and vaults. His his right spur would then describe an arc which intersects with the Treasury flag, hanging on a pole to the right of Mary. Somewhere I've seen a picture of the Treasury flag, and there is indeed a small rent in the area where the spur must have hit.

[Gene C]

I understand the GAR Museum in Springfield claims to have the flag which Booth's caught his spur on, and the flag is on public display. Just another reason to join us on our visit to Springfield this coming Oct. (shameless plug )

http://www.civilwar.org/civil-war-discov...useum.html

[L Verge]

I'm going with Joe and davg on this. I have never thought anything but that Portal I was the exit point with the Treasury flag and the Washington engraving bearing the marks. I believe Mike Kauffman may not trust the damage to the frame of the engraving, however. It seems that I remember him saying that the damage may have come from a souvenir seeker.

[Gene C]

If someone could post the diagram of the interior of the box, which shows how the seating was arranged, that might help. I can't remember what threaed it's been posted on. Would Portal II, once you've got Major Rathbone out of the way, be the easier and more open exit point?

[RobertLC]

    Thanks everyone. I appreciate your interest.
I always assumed portal II for Booth’s escape and Taft’s entrance. I've attached another picture of the interior from a slightly different angle showing the marks on the floor. Not sure any of those are from Booth’s spur, but I suppose any of them could be. It seems to me that a jump from portal I would have placed Booth dangerously close to the front edge of the stage. I don’t recall ever reading that he was that close to the edge, close enough to reach up and grab, if you will. Also, I have thought that portal I would have been too congested to get to with the President and Mrs. Lincoln there. Some of the same thinking goes into my reasoning why Taft entered by portal II. But I have found no hard evidence for that either.

[RJNorton]

If someone could post the diagram of the interior of the box, which shows how the seating was arranged, that might help. I can't remember what threaed it's been posted on. Would Portal II, once you've got Major Rathbone out of the way, be the easier and more open exit point?

Gene, I found this. Don't know how accurate it is. The indication is that JWB leaped from Portal I.

SOURCE: http://www.oldmagazinearticles.com/archi...eater_1865

[davg2000]

I understand the GAR Museum in Springfield claims to have the flag which Booth's caught his spur on, and the flag is on public display. Just another reason to join us on our visit to Springfield this coming Oct. (shameless plug )

http://www.civilwar.org/civil-war-discov...useum.html

That's news to me! I really don't think it's common knowledge in Springfield that the GAR Hall has that flag. I'll have to check it out. The Hall has a great deal of material, but the last time I went I thought it needed organization. ALPLM and Springfield Tourism do not publicize the Hall.

[RobertLC]

Thanks for the diagram, Roger.

[RJNorton]

I understand the GAR Museum in Springfield claims to have the flag which Booth's caught his spur on, and the flag is on public display. Just another reason to join us on our visit to Springfield this coming Oct. (shameless plug )

http://www.civilwar.org/civil-war-discov...useum.html

That's news to me! I really don't think it's common knowledge in Springfield that the GAR Hall has that flag. I'll have to check it out. The Hall has a great deal of material, but the last time I went I thought it needed organization. ALPLM and Springfield Tourism do not publicize the Hall.

This was new to me, too. I thought Ford's itself had that flag, and the small strip of it that Booth broke off was discovered by the Connecticut Historical Society. The strip was located in the same box that contained the Treasury Guard national flag which the Connecticut Historical Society has in its possession.

[Cliff Roberts]

An early artist's sketch of the stage and box shows a tiny mark on the stage immediately below the President's box which the artist indicates is a tear in the stage carpet where Booth landed, and I think one of the early photographs of the stage shows the same mark. I can't immediately put my finger on the images, but as I recall, the mark is beneath where the Lincolns were seated, indicating that Booth dropped from a point between Mrs. Lincoln and the center pillar where the Washington portrait was hung. I'm going strictly by memory here. I might add that the diagram does not accurately depict the location of the chair and sofa where Miss Harris and Maj. Rathbone were seated at the time of the assassination. They were seated close enough to the railing for both to view the play.