assassination

[Susan Higginbotham]

(11-30-2015 10:03 AM)Gene C Wrote:  Certainly interesting regarding Holohan, good find Jim
How long had Mary Surratt operated the boarding house before the assassination, about a year?

Not that long. The first boarder, either Nora Fitzpatrick or Weichmann, arrived in October 1864.

[Jim Woodall]

Thank you Susan for digging up that Loyalty oath so quickly. Did you have that saved off already or do you have a source of loyalty oaths that you consult readily?


More info on John Holohan:

National Republican 8 Aug 1861 pg 3 - more of a description of the testimony against John Holohan regarding Bull Run.

National Republican 10 Feb 1862 pg 1 - let go from Navy Yard during a purge of questionable characters. He was employed in the Quartermaster's Department.

Local Intelligence 10 Jun 1863 pg 3 - arrested for attempted garroting of a Mr. Resin Webster

Evening Star 7 Aug 1861 pg 3 - light description of investigation regarding Bull Run.

Evening Star 8 Aug 1861 pg 3 - two columns of trial and witnesses regarding Bull Run investigation.

It would appear that John T and perhaps his dad, John, worked on the extension of the Capitol for several years. At some point, perhaps John T had to take on other jobs, perhaps as early as 1850 when a John Holohan was a day watchman (perhaps at the English embassy? but this might be his father). Certainly, in the 1860's, he was catching what he could for work. Their are articles indicating bills for relief of John Holohan at several points in time, probably reflective of work done on the Capitol but delay in payment.

His dad died in 1857 being reportedly in the district since the 1810s and perhaps 80 years old (although that does not seem to match with the census record which seems to indicate about 1790 for his birth in Limerick, Ireland).

The father, John, in an indenture for debt dated 1824 is listed as living in Alexandria, then part of the district. His wife had to sign off on the note. Her name is given as Bridget. This info is from the note being presented for auction by the site, rareamericana.com, because the person signing it is Judge Richard Bland Lee, a former Virginia Congressman and friend of James Madison.

The father was in business with a James Holohan who I believe is a brother. The father was an orderly sergeant with the National Volunteers while James was the same for the District Artillery.

The father definitely kept running into cash flow issues because his properties were up for auction for taxes and for debts. This was usually house(s)/lots in original lot 4 of square 731. Even after his death, his heirs in 1886, esp. Mary Holohan, were requested to prove cause for it, once again, not to be sold for debt owed against St. Vincent Orphan Asylum. I would assume at this point, the property had passed to John T and his heirs. The father was even in debtor's prison in 1836. See article in Evening Star dated 24 Dec 1886 on page 1.

An interesting article, although it does not reference John T but only Holohan refers to J. M. Lloyd being maintained by the Washington Police force while Holohan was release from the Auxiliary Guard during a consolidation prior to the creation of the MPD. This newspaper article is in the National Republican dated 2 Aug 1861 on page 3.

As early as 1855, John T was a Jackson Democrat. See news article in Daily Union dated 25 Dec 1855 on page 2.

John T, a brother, and his father were stone cutters specializing in marble. Seems like it should have been a good job in the district.

A lot of the newspapers are up on Newspapers.com with most of the older references able to be found on GenealogyBank.com. Some may even be found at the LOC in the chronicling America section where they have digital newspapers (usually not too good with the older issues).

[Susan Higginbotham]

(12-02-2015 05:40 AM)Jim Woodall Wrote:  Thank you Susan for digging up that Loyalty oath so quickly. Did you have that saved off already or do you have a source of loyalty oaths that you consult readily?

I got the loyalty oath from Fold3. It's a good source for such things. Some of the assassination-related material there used to be available for public viewing; not sure if it still is.

[RJNorton]

(11-29-2015 07:09 AM)Jim Woodall Wrote:  Following Bull Run, John Holohan was arrested and charged with treason. Some of the charges included causing the stampede at Bull Run and also threatening the president. There are several articles in the local papers covering this. If my memory serves correctly, he was eventually let go after ye olde "loyalty oath." It makes for interesting reading.

see:
National Republican, 31 Jul 1861, pg 3 - stampede, threatening

"Arrested for Treason. Yesterday John Holohan was arrested by the military authorities, on the oath of citizens, charging him with complicity with the rebels, and threatening that the President should not be allowed to remain in this city longer than three months. It is supposed that be, by some means, passed himself off as a wagon-master at the Bull Run engagement, and added not a little in creating the stampede among the baggage wagons. He was committed to jail by Justice Donn."

Seeing John Holohan's feelings makes me wonder all the more why Weichmann did not move out of the Surratt boardinghouse. I know Weichmann gives an explanation in his book, but seeing this information on John Holohan makes me wonder even more how sincere he was. I would have been very uncomfortable living there if I were 100% Union as claimed by Mr. Weichmann.

[Jim Woodall]

(12-02-2015 08:24 AM)Susan Higginbotham Wrote:  

(12-02-2015 05:40 AM)Jim Woodall Wrote:  Thank you Susan for digging up that Loyalty oath so quickly. Did you have that saved off already or do you have a source of loyalty oaths that you consult readily?

I got the loyalty oath from Fold3. It's a good source for such things. Some of the assassination-related material there used to be available for public viewing; not sure if it still is.

I visit Fold3 for a few things but it seems like I am hit and miss on searches. Some days better than others on that site.

The Lincoln Assassination Papers are still free on it. I did find John T Holohan picking up items from the Judge Advocate General for Anna Surratt post trial on 18 Aug 1865. It was a trunk containing:

paper box of family letters
bills and accounts
a couple of notes owed to Mary Surratt
2 pistol cases [Q: did anyone chase these down to which weapons?]
1 sword [I think I saw somewhere that this was from above John's bed]
5 portraits
1 box caps [I don't know if these went with the bullet mold or the pistols that were in the cases?]
1 vest
1 hair Pa??? [could not fully decipher]
1 ?????? [could not fully decipher]

[RJNorton]

Jim, this list is also in Edwards and Steers' "The Lincoln Assassination: The Evidence."

After "1 vest" it says "1 pair pants" and "1 trunk."

https://books.google.com/books?id=GvYpUe...an&f=false

[Jim Woodall]

Found another John Holohan comment in a news article I had saved off.

Article in "The Herald and Torch Light (Hagerstown, Maryland) dated 20 Sep 1865 on pg 2 in the third column under the article "Washington Correspondence":

------------------

Since the death of Mrs. Surratt, her house on H Street has been occupied by her daughter Annie, who appears not to be so much smitten by grief, as to interfere with her entertaining a great deal of company, and appearing so often on the public thoroughfares as to occasion a considerable amount of remark. The additional members of her household, are Hollahan and his wife, who figured conspicuously on the defence side of the celebrated conspiracy trial. Hollohan was formerly a substitute broker in this city, and has spent a considerable portion of the past two years in the old Capitol, for fraud, disloyalty, and other trifling charges.

------------------

So, even though I do not recall it brought up at trial, someone was aware of his background shortly after the trial. Is it not likely they knew his background during the trial?

Would Mary Surratt have been aware of these troubles of John Holohan?

[Gene C]

Interesting article, thanks for posting it Jim.
The writer seems to have a negative view of Anna and Hollahan.
"Hollohan was formerly a substitute broker in this city, and has spent a considerable portion of the past two years in the old Capitol, for fraud, disloyalty, and other trifling charges."

Interesting that the reporter links fraud and disloyalty with other trifling charges.

[L Verge]

Very interesting article, Jim, and thanks for bringing it to light. I will share with my staff, volunteers, and maybe all Surratt Society members in a future Courier. I am a little hesitant in the latter because we do have a good number of Surratts and some descendants as members, but history does need to consider all angles.

The situation at that boardinghouse does seem to bear more investigation, especially the history of John Holohan. We knew of a spousal abuse issue and often thought that the Church placed the family under the roof of Mrs. Surratt for a positive religious environment. Sounds to me like the boardinghouse was hiding more than just Confederate agents...

[Jim Woodall]

(12-12-2015 09:59 AM)L Verge Wrote:  Very interesting article, Jim, and thanks for bringing it to light. I will share with my staff, volunteers, and maybe all Surratt Society members in a future Courier. I am a little hesitant in the latter because we do have a good number of Surratts and some descendants as members, but history does need to consider all angles.

The situation at that boardinghouse does seem to bear more investigation, especially the history of John Holohan. We knew of a spousal abuse issue and often thought that the Church placed the family under the roof of Mrs. Surratt for a positive religious environment. Sounds to me like the boardinghouse was hiding more than just Confederate agents...

The more I check into things, my hesitancy has increased as well. There appears to be a rupture in relations between my Anderson and Jenkins lines circa 1865. As I have been gathering info from distant cousins, I grow hesitant in remarking on some things, especially if I have not cleared it with them yet. I do now know that there were 1st cousins and great-aunts who did maintain relations with Mary Surratt up until the assassination.

Along those lines, without naming the individuals, two cousins apparently are said to have visited the Surratt house after what had taken place (I presume the soldiers going to her house). When they got there, they were put under arrest and held overnight. One of the cousins had recently given birth and had requested to be released to take care of her infant. However, two soldiers were dispatched to bring the infant henceforth to her.

I would like to separately verify that tale, preferably without naming said individuals (who I have identified and can understand why they had relations with Mary Surratt). I did a quick check on the records at Fold3 but the search did not turn anything up. Is there another reference I might be able to locate that would list arrests/detainments that were done at the Surratt house? Were soldiers stationed there after the arrest of Mary Surratt who might detain visitors for questioning?

I have to admit, sometimes I feel like letting "sleeping dogs lie" but I started into this to better understand the relationships and interactions of family including what appears to be a disturbance in those interactions. Clearly, the Jenkins side stayed in tight connection with each other but the Andersons did not seem to interact much with them after 1865. Unfortunately, I am beginning to think that the assassination may be the 800 lb gorilla in the room.

I had been hoping that it might have only been religious differences or maybe just the North/South issue.

On another note, I am pretty sure that Richard Boiseau, the reporter, knew he was covering kin folk at the trial and the hanging.

I always viewed facts as facts, but truth does not always calm the ruffled feathers, even after 150 years.

[L Verge]

You have much more information on this than what I have known. I'm going to turn this over to our new librarian to see if there is any mention of these "arrests" in the Hall files here at the museum. So far as I know, there were soldiers stationed at the boardinghouse when the occupants were taken in for questioning, but I don't know how long they stayed there. I also know that the name Boiseau runs through the earlier history of Mary Surratt.

I would also like to ask Susan H if she has run across any of this history in her research.

[BettyO]

I found this interesting site online - re: Boiseau and the Surratt Family -


https://deathandlifeofhistoricanacostia....e-rambler/

[Susan Higginbotham]

(12-15-2015 09:56 AM)L Verge Wrote:  You have much more information on this than what I have known. I'm going to turn this over to our new librarian to see if there is any mention of these "arrests" in the Hall files here at the museum. So far as I know, there were soldiers stationed at the boardinghouse when the occupants were taken in for questioning, but I don't know how long they stayed there. I also know that the name Boiseau runs through the earlier history of Mary Surratt.

I would also like to ask Susan H if she has run across any of this history in her research.

I remember reading somewhere that people who stopped by the boardinghouse after the arrests of Mary et al. were detained and questioned, but will have to look up the source. I think it may have been Mary's old servant Rachel who said this.

Edit: At John Surratt's trial, Rachel, aka Eliza Hawkins, testified that she went to the boardinghouse on the morning of Tuesday, April 18, to get her young daughter, and was told by the soldiers there that anyone who went there could not come out. She testified that Anna Ward and another unnamed young lady were detained after coming to the boardinghouse that day, and that Rachel herself was held there until 8 p.m., when she was taken to the provost marshal's for questioning. Her relevant testimony is in vol. I of the John Surratt trial book, pp. 693-94.

https://books.google.com/books?id=r3IDAA...ns&f=false

William Wallace Kirby, Mary Surratt's friend and neighbor, gave a statement on April 18 in which he said that he had gone to the boardinghouse (apparently in hopes of getting more information from Mary about the whereabouts of her son) that morning and was detained. His statement is on p. 783 of Edwards' and Steers' The Lincoln Assassination: The Evidence. It might be on Fold3 as well.

[L Verge]

(12-15-2015 10:53 AM)Susan Higginbotham Wrote:  

(12-15-2015 09:56 AM)L Verge Wrote:  You have much more information on this than what I have known. I'm going to turn this over to our new librarian to see if there is any mention of these "arrests" in the Hall files here at the museum. So far as I know, there were soldiers stationed at the boardinghouse when the occupants were taken in for questioning, but I don't know how long they stayed there. I also know that the name Boiseau runs through the earlier history of Mary Surratt.

I would also like to ask Susan H if she has run across any of this history in her research.

Thank you, Susan. Wish I could hire you as our research historian...
I remember reading somewhere that people who stopped by the boardinghouse after the arrests of Mary et al. were detained and questioned, but will have to look up the source. I think it may have been Mary's old servant Rachel who said this.

Edit: At John Surratt's trial, Rachel, aka Eliza Hawkins, testified that she went to the boardinghouse on the morning of Tuesday, April 18, to get her young daughter, and was told by the soldiers there that anyone who went there could not come out. She testified that Anna Ward and another unnamed young lady were detained after coming to the boardinghouse that day, and that Rachel herself was held there until 8 p.m., when she was taken to the provost marshal's for questioning. Her relevant testimony is in vol. I of the John Surratt trial book, pp. 693-94.

https://books.google.com/books?id=r3IDAA...ns&f=false

William Wallace Kirby, Mary Surratt's friend and neighbor, gave a statement on April 18 in which he said that he had gone to the boardinghouse (apparently in hopes of getting more information from Mary about the whereabouts of her son) that morning and was detained. His statement is on p. 783 of Edwards' and Steers' The Lincoln Assassination: The Evidence. It might be on Fold3 as well.

[Jim Woodall]

(12-15-2015 10:03 AM)BettyO Wrote:  I found this interesting site online - re: Boiseau and the Surratt Family -


https://deathandlifeofhistoricanacostia....e-rambler/

Actually, John Muller in the first article on Lost Tribe is referring to an email I had sent him at the time. I also sent him some more information on James Boiseau a bit after that.

I do need to correct something from that. The Jenkins' Tavern did not go into the brother's Thomas Jenkins (he who housed Mary Surratt and the kids) hands but in 1852 went to the nephew, Joseph Thomas Jenkins, son of the brother, Basil Jenkins. I believe Joseph Thomas Jenkins' will returned it to Ida Boiseau who later sold it to the Schelihorns and eventually transferred to some Vermillions. Interestingly, a sister of Joseph, Sarah Ann, did marry a Lawson Vermillion but they died in the early 1860s leaving a son, Albert, who died shortly afterwards having been struck by lightning beneath a tree in front of the tavern. In 1860, Sarah Ann Vermillion was living with her brother, Joseph Thomas Jenkins, and their mother, Eliza Jenkins.

Basil Jenkins' house where his widow, Eliza, lived was taken during the Civil War by General Sickles for officer quarters for Fort Baker.

Interestingly, Ida Boiseau also ended up with land that had been part of Fort Wagner (down the hill and across Good Hope Road from Fort Baker with my 3rd great grandfather, Thomas Anderson, sandwiched between the forts). I am not fully sure yet how she obtained the Fort Wagner land but likely was land originally owned by her father, James Boiseau, near to the Boiseau house where some say the Surratts were married.

If anyone has a copy of the Henri J Wiesel (grandson of James Boiseau) letter stating the Surratts were married in the Boiseau house, I would love to get my hands on a copy or transcript of said letter.