New Development in Booth Case Coming Soon

[Steve Whitlock]

(06-21-2019 08:22 AM)Steve Whitlock Wrote:  

(06-21-2019 03:58 AM)Steve Wrote:  [quote='Steve Whitlock' pid='77471' dateline='1561070511']
Also, when I mentioned the actress being born 10 years after George died, that should have been 10 years after JWB was presumed killed at the Garrett farm.

There were many John Booths, and some John W. Booths, so he wasn't necessarily a John Wilkes Booth, and since David E. George died about 23 years after Laura's mom I don't know whether she presumed David E. George was really the John W. Booth that married her mother. Grandma Martha, mentioned in the news article was still around, dying in 1904, so did she say David E. George was John Wilkes Booth. There was mention of money [the real John Wilkes Booth did have money invested in oil]. After reading the article again last night I went looking for who she was and was surprised at the marriage record.

I got as far as a Virginia (Asburn) McCrae b: abt 1921, living in Los Angeles, married to a John R. McCrae.

Petition of Charles Wilson Asburn to bve notified by the court of any proceedings regarding his mother's estate [Laura Ida Driver on the petition]

4 June 1925

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

CharlesRice28

CharlesRice28 originally shared this on 15 Feb 2018
Linked To
**********************
Charles W Asburn

in the 1910 United States Federal Census

Name: Charles W Asburn [Son of Laura Ida (Booth) Asburn, stage name for Asburn was Levine]
Age in 1910: 12
Birth Year: abt 1898
Birthplace: New York
Home in 1910: Philadelphia Ward 13, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Street: Vine Street
Race: White
Gender: Male
Relation to Head of House: Lodger
Marital status: Single
Father's Birthplace: New York
Mother's Birthplace: Tennessee
Native Tongue: English
Occupation: Performer
Industry: Theatrical
Employer, Employee or Other: Wage Earner
Able to Read: Yes
Able to Write: Yes
Neighbors:
Household Members:
Name Age
Lewis Howard 35 [2nd marriage for Laura]
Laura I Howard 36 [Laura Ida (Booth) Levine (Asburn)- Howard-Driver (Norman)
Charles W Asburn 12 [Charles Wilson Asburn]
*************************************
Charles Wilson Asburne
Birth 30 Jun 1897
Death 8 Mar 1977 (aged 79)
Atlantic City, Atlantic County, New Jersey, USA
Burial
Holy Cross Cemetery and Chapel Mausoleum
Mays Landing, Atlantic County, New Jersey, USA
Plot Lawn 5, Sec 1, Lot 62, Grave 2, No Headstone
Memorial ID 64682894 · View Source

"CHARLES W. ASBURNE

"ATLANTIC CITY - A retired actor, Charles W. Asburne, 69, of the Inlet Towers, died Sunday in Atlantic City Medical Center.
"Mr. Asburn's career spanned 50 years. He had appeared on radio and in Vaudeville and motion pictures,
"He was born in Boundbrook and had been a local resident 30 years.
"He is survived by his daughter, Mrs. Virginia McCrea, of Los Angeles, Calif.
"Mass of Resurrection will be celebrated at 10 a.m.Wednesday in the Church of the Holy Spirit. Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery, Mays Landing. Arrangements are by the H. M. Gormley Funeral Home, Albany and Winchester avenues."

From The Press of Atlantic City for Tuesday, March 10, 1977, page 6:
Family Members
Spouse

Photo
Evelyn Asburne

1892–1944
**************
Virginia F Asburn

in the California, Marriage Index, 1949-1959

Name: Virginia F Asburn
Gender: Female
Estimated birth year: abt 1921
Age: 35
Marriage Date: 17 Feb 1956
Marriage Place: Los Angeles, California, USA
Spouse: John R McCrea
Spouse Age: 24
*********************
I have another marriage record for Louisa and John W. Booth, but size is too large. As I said I do have more information.

After taking another look for Virginia Florenz (Asburn) McCrea I found a marriage record for her in 1980 to Thomas John Smercak.

Thomas John Smercak

in the Nevada, Marriage Index, 1956-2005

Name: Thomas John Smercak
Gender: Male
Residence State: California
Spouse: Virginia Florenz McCrea
Spouse Residence State: California
Marriage Date: 26 Dec 1980
Marriage County: Clark
Officiant Type: Civil celebrant
Recorded Date: 6 Jan 1981
Recorded County: Clark
Book: 6120
Page: 89957
Instrument number: 89957
***************************
Virginia subsequently passed away in 1997:

Virginia Florenz Smercak

in the Nevada, Death Index, 1980-2012

Name: Virginia Florenz Smercak
Birth Date: 2 Jul 1919
Birth Place: New York
Death Date: 28 Jan 1997
Death Place: Clark, Nevada, USA
*********************************
Virginia F Smercak
BillionGraves Index
Name Virginia F Smercak
Event Type Burial
Event Place Las Vegas, Clark, Nevada, United States
Cemetery Palm Eastern
Latitude 36.052635
Longitude -115.113939
Birth Date 02 Jul 1919
Death Date 28 Jan 1997
Affiliate Create Date 2015-05-25 00:40:45
Affiliate Image Identifier 14193353
Citing this Record

"BillionGraves Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKDK-BL4W : 9 November 2015), Virginia F Smercak, died 28 Jan 1997; citing BillionGraves (http://www.billiongraves.com : 2012), Burial at Palm Eastern, Las Vegas, Clark, Nevada, United States.
**************************************************
I have been in touch with Mr Smercak, who advised me Virginia was the end of that line as far as John W. Booth and Louisa Jane (Price) Payne-Booth are concerned. She had no siblings or children of her own, other than a half-brother, McCager Payne, whose father was Zebediah Payne. With no living descendants of Virginia there is no chance for getting some dna to help figure out exactly who her great grandfather really was, without an exhumation.

[Paul F.]

I'm new to the forum here, but certainly not new to the assassination. I appreciate the sharing of the link for the news story! I found it entertaining to read. If you study art or anatomy at all, you will be quick to notice that the human face is not a mirror image from side to side. And, aside from the fact that the two pictures are of mustachioed men, there are no real similarities. The chin/jawline is different, the lower lip is different, the eyes and brow lines are different, the bridge of the nose is different. There is virtually no similarity between the two. As a dentist, I deal with people's faces every day. Look at the length of the upper lip between the two, and notice that Booth appears to have a longer upper lip than John St. Helen. The upper lip gets longer as we age, not shorter. And, not to disparage TV programs, but rarely is anything of substance revealed on them. The real discoveries come from thorough and often mundane research. We'll see where the discussion heads from here!

[Steve Whitlock]

(08-25-2019 02:22 AM)Steve Whitlock Wrote:  

(06-21-2019 08:22 AM)Steve Whitlock Wrote:  

(06-21-2019 03:58 AM)Steve Wrote:  [quote='Steve Whitlock' pid='77471' dateline='1561070511']
Also, when I mentioned the actress being born 10 years after George died, that should have been 10 years after JWB was presumed killed at the Garrett farm.

There were many John Booths, and some John W. Booths, so he wasn't necessarily a John Wilkes Booth, and since David E. George died about 23 years after Laura's mom I don't know whether she presumed David E. George was really the John W. Booth that married her mother. Grandma Martha, mentioned in the news article was still around, dying in 1904, so did she say David E. George was John Wilkes Booth. There was mention of money [the real John Wilkes Booth did have money invested in oil]. After reading the article again last night I went looking for who she was and was surprised at the marriage record.

I got as far as a Virginia (Asburn) McCrae b: abt 1921, living in Los Angeles, married to a John R. McCrae.

Petition of Charles Wilson Asburn to bve notified by the court of any proceedings regarding his mother's estate [Laura Ida Driver on the petition]

4 June 1925

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

CharlesRice28

CharlesRice28 originally shared this on 15 Feb 2018
Linked To
**********************
Charles W Asburn

in the 1910 United States Federal Census

Name: Charles W Asburn [Son of Laura Ida (Booth) Asburn, stage name for Asburn was Levine]
Age in 1910: 12
Birth Year: abt 1898
Birthplace: New York
Home in 1910: Philadelphia Ward 13, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Street: Vine Street
Race: White
Gender: Male
Relation to Head of House: Lodger
Marital status: Single
Father's Birthplace: New York
Mother's Birthplace: Tennessee
Native Tongue: English
Occupation: Performer
Industry: Theatrical
Employer, Employee or Other: Wage Earner
Able to Read: Yes
Able to Write: Yes
Neighbors:
Household Members:
Name Age
Lewis Howard 35 [2nd marriage for Laura]
Laura I Howard 36 [Laura Ida (Booth) Levine (Asburn)- Howard-Driver (Norman)
Charles W Asburn 12 [Charles Wilson Asburn]
*************************************
Charles Wilson Asburne
Birth 30 Jun 1897
Death 8 Mar 1977 (aged 79)
Atlantic City, Atlantic County, New Jersey, USA
Burial
Holy Cross Cemetery and Chapel Mausoleum
Mays Landing, Atlantic County, New Jersey, USA
Plot Lawn 5, Sec 1, Lot 62, Grave 2, No Headstone
Memorial ID 64682894 · View Source

"CHARLES W. ASBURNE

"ATLANTIC CITY - A retired actor, Charles W. Asburne, 69, of the Inlet Towers, died Sunday in Atlantic City Medical Center.
"Mr. Asburn's career spanned 50 years. He had appeared on radio and in Vaudeville and motion pictures,
"He was born in Boundbrook and had been a local resident 30 years.
"He is survived by his daughter, Mrs. Virginia McCrea, of Los Angeles, Calif.
"Mass of Resurrection will be celebrated at 10 a.m.Wednesday in the Church of the Holy Spirit. Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery, Mays Landing. Arrangements are by the H. M. Gormley Funeral Home, Albany and Winchester avenues."

From The Press of Atlantic City for Tuesday, March 10, 1977, page 6:
Family Members
Spouse

Photo
Evelyn Asburne

1892–1944
**************
Virginia F Asburn

in the California, Marriage Index, 1949-1959

Name: Virginia F Asburn
Gender: Female
Estimated birth year: abt 1921
Age: 35
Marriage Date: 17 Feb 1956
Marriage Place: Los Angeles, California, USA
Spouse: John R McCrea
Spouse Age: 24
*********************
I have another marriage record for Louisa and John W. Booth, but size is too large. As I said I do have more information.

After taking another look for Virginia Florenz (Asburn) McCrea I found a marriage record for her in 1980 to Thomas John Smercak.

Thomas John Smercak

in the Nevada, Marriage Index, 1956-2005

Name: Thomas John Smercak
Gender: Male
Residence State: California
Spouse: Virginia Florenz McCrea
Spouse Residence State: California
Marriage Date: 26 Dec 1980
Marriage County: Clark
Officiant Type: Civil celebrant
Recorded Date: 6 Jan 1981
Recorded County: Clark
Book: 6120
Page: 89957
Instrument number: 89957
***************************
Virginia subsequently passed away in 1997:

Virginia Florenz Smercak

in the Nevada, Death Index, 1980-2012

Name: Virginia Florenz Smercak
Birth Date: 2 Jul 1919
Birth Place: New York
Death Date: 28 Jan 1997
Death Place: Clark, Nevada, USA
*********************************
Virginia F Smercak
BillionGraves Index
Name Virginia F Smercak
Event Type Burial
Event Place Las Vegas, Clark, Nevada, United States
Cemetery Palm Eastern
Latitude 36.052635
Longitude -115.113939
Birth Date 02 Jul 1919
Death Date 28 Jan 1997
Affiliate Create Date 2015-05-25 00:40:45
Affiliate Image Identifier 14193353
Citing this Record

"BillionGraves Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKDK-BL4W : 9 November 2015), Virginia F Smercak, died 28 Jan 1997; citing BillionGraves (http://www.billiongraves.com : 2012), Burial at Palm Eastern, Las Vegas, Clark, Nevada, United States.
**************************************************
I have been in touch with Mr Smercak, who advised me Virginia was the end of that line as far as John W. Booth and Louisa Jane (Price) Payne-Booth are concerned. She had no siblings or children of her own, other than a half-brother, McCager Payne, whose father was Zebediah Payne. With no living descendants of Virginia there is no chance for getting some dna to help figure out exactly who her great grandfather really was, without an exhumation.

Here are some photos of Virginia Florenz (Asburn) McCrea-Smercak, her parents and maternal grandparents, and her uncles. The Bonney family were Vaudevillians, which is likely how Juanita Bonney and Charles W. Asburn Jr (aka Charles Levine/Lavine stage name) met for their very short marriage.

In the "King of Marvin Gardens" movie photo Charles Lavine is lying on the bed with his grandson, Bruce Dern seated by him and other grandson, Jack Nicholson, standing. I don't know who the other man in the photo is off the top of my head.

[Dave Taylor]

I'm hoping to resurrect this thread somewhat as I'm trying to make sense of all the great work the Steves have done regarding the Leadville John Wilkes Booth who died in 1916. In July, the family and I are taking a road trip to Colorado and I was going to try to visit Leadville and find this JWB's grave while I am there. But I'm having trouble parsing all of the information in this thread together. Just who do we believe the Leadville John Wilkes Booth was?

[Gene C]

(06-21-2024 05:06 PM)Dave Taylor Wrote:  Just who do we believe the Leadville John Wilkes Booth was?

David George ?
My theory is David George didn't die in Enid, OK.
After an over zealous mortician tried to overwhelm David with formaldehyde fumes from a nearby furniture store and refinishing business, David managed to escape and hid in a barn that was used for making moonshine. Revenue agents staked out the farm hoping to capture George a/k/a John Wiles Booth. They surrounded the barn and tried to set fire to it (same old routine). The stored moonshine in the barn caught fire and blew up the barn. He somehow managed to escape and spent his final years in Leadville.

Naturally this reminds me of a song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpuCOTxTiFI

[Steve]

(06-21-2024 05:06 PM)Dave Taylor Wrote:  I'm hoping to resurrect this thread somewhat as I'm trying to make sense of all the great work the Steves have done regarding the Leadville John Wilkes Booth who died in 1916. In July, the family and I are taking a road trip to Colorado and I was going to try to visit Leadville and find this JWB's grave while I am there. But I'm having trouble parsing all of the information in this thread together. Just who do we believe the Leadville John Wilkes Booth was?

Sorry Dave, I didn't see this post you made last year to make a comment before your trip.

Firstly, a new Find A Grave page for him was created after my initial posts about this 6 years ago:


https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/2713...lkes-booth




So, here are my thoughts on the Leadville John Wilkes Booth:

- I believe he is the same John Wilkes Booth who married Louisa Payne in 1872 in Tennessee and was the father of Laura Ida Booth (b.1873) for the following reasons

1. Both John Wilkes Booths were carpenters.

2. The Leadville Booth first unquestionably appears in the record in 1874 in Cheyenne, Wyoming where he marries another woman Dolly Baker. The JWB who married Louisa abandoned her while she was pregnant with Laura Ida. That fits neatly into the timeline where Leadville Booth first appears in Cheyenne.

3. The Leadville Booth's obituary published in the Leadville Herald in 1916 says that he had a prior wife who "died" in 1872. I've reposted the obituary below and it makes a lot of wild (and definitely wrong) claims but the timeline for the first wife to no longer be a part of his life matches pretty well.




- Do I think he was a son of Junius Brutus Booth Jr.? Probably not, unless better evidence comes up, for the following reasons:

1. There's no record of such a son.

2. The obituary says that Leadville Booth was born in Massachusetts in 1848 with his mother being Agnes Booth, but then later on it says his father remarried in 1867 to Agnes Booth (ie Mrs Harry Perry). Since the obituary's information is probably coming from Dolly, I can't tell if it's a mistake on her part or his.

3. There are other wild fantastical features in the Leadville Booth obituary, like his first wife dying in a circus accident or him being an escaped murder witness. (I kind of wonder if that second story was created to explain his actions if he was being careful to try and not get caught just in case if there were relatives of Louisa looking for him.) I checked newspapers for accounts of such a circus accident but couldn't find any. I also checked for newspaper stories of a similar fleeing murder witness but can't find any close enough matches so far.

4. I don't think the information on Junius Brutus Booth Jr.'s life matches well, but Dave you'd probably be a better judge than me on that point.

31 December 1916 Herald Democrat of Leadville, CO

[RJNorton]

Many thanks to Steve. Steve writes, "I have a couple of items to post to the Forum on the thread where Dave Taylor asks about the Leadville John Wilkes Booth. One is his 1874 Cheyenne, Wyoming marriage record. The other is an article from the May 8, 1901 Leadville Herald Democrat where he is asked about his opinion on an 8 hour workday."

[RJNorton]

Thank you to Steve for sending this material. Steve writes, "I have something to post to the Forum. It's pages from an 1895 History of Hood County, Texas. It does mention Finis L. Bates' longshot campaign to get on the "Redeemer" (Anti-Reconstruction) Democratic ticket for Lt. Gov. Of Texas in the 1873 election.

But here's the incredible thing, it actually also mentions John St. Helen 8 years before David E. George would commit suicide! Now it only uses his last name; mentioning St. Helen's attempt, along with an accomplice, to murder a man named James Wray. It's not a full account of the incident, but a brief mention because the author seems to find the duo's inept attempt humorous and because Wray was the son-in-law of one of the first commissioners of Hood County. Also, it does say that St. Helen suffered from asthma and usually spoke softly due to it.