Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination: The Untold Story of the Actors and Stagehands at Ford's Theatre

It's hard to imagine that there was another angle to be taken with the Lincoln assassination, but Thomas Bogar has found it in this history of the actors and theater employees at Ford's on the night of 14 April 1865. Bogar explores the theater culture of the period, the history of Ford's and its owners, and the biographies of the men and women in the house that night, both before and after Lincoln's assassination. Particular attention is paid to Ned Spangler's trial and time in federal prison.

A very useful contribution to the literature.

This scholarly book examines the backgrounds of the 46 people who were either present as performers or support staff at Ford's Theatre the night of the assassination, what they were doing at the time of the assassination and immediately thereafter, their treatment by those investigating the assassination, and the impact of these events on their lives and careers. The three Ford brothers, one of whom owned the theatre, were included. As a whole, the stagehands were more harshly treated than the actors. The book, gets rather bogged down with so many people discussed; fortunately, Dr. Bogar provides a list of the people identifying them by their role (i.e. occupation), age, Southern or Union sympathies, etc. at the beginning of the book. show more Dr. Bogar also offers an analysis of the investigation and trials of any defendants, pointing out weaknesses of the proceedings. show less

I’ve been a student of Abraham Lincoln for many years. I enjoy reading about him and his family.
I always seem to learn something new. When I stumbled across this 2013 gem from Regency History, I knew I was onto something.

None of the other books I had read or movies I had seen every delved into this particular aspect of the assassination. As Bogar researches this unmined area, he makes some interesting revelations.

The book is about the forty-six actors and stagehand that were either on stage or backstage after John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. Now approaching the 150th anniversary of this event, figures from the past seem to hover back in the gaslight for another review.

The people who were in John T. show more Ford’s employment that night had their lives complicated, distributed, disrupted, and even destroyed. Some could never outrun Lincoln’s ghost; others, like Peanut John completely disappeared from history.

The crux of the true-life expose is how most of Ford’ employees were arrested and tried.

Not many history books cover this aspect of the assassination.

While not a page-turner, Backstage at the Lincoln Assassination: The Untold Story of the Actors and Stagehands at Ford’s Theater is an interesting, revelatory read. I give it 5 out of 5 stars. show less