HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Mary Elizabeth Jenkins SurrattCashin, p. 287.Steers, 2010, p. 516. (1820 or May 1823 – July 7, 1865) was an American boarding house owner in Washington, D.C., who was convicted of taking part in the
conspiracy A conspiracy, also known as a plot, is a secret plan or agreement between persons (called conspirers or conspirators) for an unlawful or harmful purpose, such as murder or treason, especially with political motivation, while keeping their agr ...
which led to the assassination of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in 1865. Sentenced to death, she was
hanged Hanging is the suspension of a person by a noose or ligature around the neck.Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed. Hanging as method of execution is unknown, as method of suicide from 1325. The '' Oxford English Dictionary'' states that hanging ...
and became the first woman
executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
by the
U.S. federal government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 states, a city within a f ...
. She maintained her innocence until her death, and the case against her was and remains controversial. Surratt was the mother of
John Surratt John Harrison Surratt Jr. (April 13, 1844 – April 21, 1916) was an American Confederate spy who was accused of plotting with John Wilkes Booth to kidnap U.S. President Abraham Lincoln; he was also suspected of involvement in the Abraham Lin ...
, who was later tried, but due to statute of limitations, was not convicted. Born in Maryland in the 1820s, Surratt converted to
Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
at a young age and remained a practicing Catholic for the rest of her life. She wed John Harrison Surratt in 1840 and had three children with him. An entrepreneur, John became the owner of a tavern, an inn, and a hotel. The Surratts were sympathetic to the
Confederate States of America The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
and often hosted fellow Confederate sympathizers at their tavern. Upon her husband's death in 1862, Surratt had to manage his estate. Tired of doing so without help, Surratt moved to her
townhouse A townhouse, townhome, town house, or town home, is a type of terraced housing. A modern townhouse is often one with a small footprint on multiple floors. In a different British usage, the term originally referred to any type of city residence ...
in Washington, D.C., which she then ran as a boardinghouse. There, she was introduced to
John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838 – April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who assassinated United States President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the prominent 19th-century Booth ...
. Booth visited the boardinghouse numerous times, as did George Atzerodt and Lewis Powell, Booth's co-conspirators in the Lincoln assassination. Shortly before killing Lincoln, Booth spoke with Surratt and handed her a package containing
binoculars Binoculars or field glasses are two refracting telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes (binocular vision) when viewing distant objects. Most binoculars are sized to be held ...
for one of her tenants,
John M. Lloyd John Minchin Lloyd (1835 — December 18, 1892) was a bricklayer and police officer in Washington, D.C., in the United States. He was one of the first police officers hired by the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia when its ...
. After Lincoln was assassinated, Surratt was arrested, then tried by a military tribunal the following month, along with the other conspirators. She was convicted primarily due to the testimonies of Lloyd, who said that she told him to have the "shooting irons" ready, and
Louis J. Weichmann Louis J. Weichmann (September 29, 1842 – June 5, 1902) was an American clerk who was one of the chief witnesses for the prosecution in the trial following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Previously, he had been also a suspect in the con ...
, who testified about Surratt's relationships with John. Five of the nine judges at her trial asked that Surratt be granted
clemency A pardon is a government decision to allow a person to be relieved of some or all of the legal consequences resulting from a criminal conviction. A pardon may be granted before or after conviction for the crime, depending on the laws of the j ...
by President
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a De ...
because of her age and gender. Johnson did not grant her clemency, though accounts differ as to whether or not he received the clemency request. Surratt was hanged on July 7, 1865, and later buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery.


Early life

Mary Elizabeth Jenkins (baptismal name, Maria Eugenia) was born to Archibald and Elizabeth Anne (née Webster) JenkinsTrindal, p. 13.Larson, p. 11. on a
tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...
plantation near the southern
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean t ...
town of Waterloo (now known as Clinton). Sources differ as to whether she was born in 1820"Surratt, Mary," in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica,'' p. 411. or 1823.Griffin, p. 152.Buchanan, p. 60.Heidler, Heidler, and Coles, p. 1909.Phelps, p. 709. There is uncertainty as to the month as well, but most sources say May.Van Doren and McHenry, p. 1010. She had two brothers: John Jenkins, born in 1822, and James Jenkins, born in 1825. Her father died in the fall of 1825 when Mary was either two or five years old, and Mary's mother then inherited their property (originally part of the
His Lordship's Kindness His Lordship's Kindness, also known as Poplar Hill, is a historic plantation estate on Woodyard Road east of Clinton, Maryland. It was built in the 1780s for Prince George's County planter Robert Darnall. The five-part Georgian mansion retains ...
estate).Trindal, p. 14. Although her father was a nondenominational
Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
and her mother
Episcopalian Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...
,"Surratt, Mary E. Jenkins (1823–1865)" in ''Women in the American Civil War,'' p. 532.Leonard, p. 43. Surratt was enrolled in a private
Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
girls'
boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of " room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exte ...
, the Academy for Young Ladies in
Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of downtown Washington, D.C. In 2020, the population was 159,467. ...
, on November 25, 1835. Mary's maternal aunt, Sarah Latham Webster, was a Catholic, which may have influenced where she was sent to school. Within two years, Mary converted to Roman Catholicism and adopted the baptismal name of Maria Eugenia.Trindal, p. 17. She stayed at the Academy for Young Ladies for four years, leaving in 1839, when the school closed. She remained an observant Catholic for the rest of her life.


Married life

Mary Jenkins met John Harrison Surratt in 1839, when she was 16 or 19 and he was 26.Cashin, p. 288.Larson, p. 12. His family had settled in Maryland in the late 1600s. An orphan, he was adopted by Richard and Sarah Neale of Washington, D.C., a wealthy couple who owned a farm.Trindal, p. 19. The Neales divided their farm among their children, and Surratt inherited a portion of it. His background has been described by historian Kate Clifford Larson as "questionable", and he had fathered at least one child out of wedlock. They wed in August 1840.Trindal, p. 20. John converted to Roman Catholicism prior to the marriage, and the couple may have wed at a Catholic church in Washington, D.C. John purchased a mill in
Oxon Hill, Maryland Oxon Hill is an unincorporated area and census-designated place (CDP) in southern Prince George's County, Maryland, United States. Oxon Hill is a suburb of Washington, located southeast of the downtown district and east of Alexandria, Virginia. It ...
, and the couple moved there. The Surratts had three children over the next few years: Isaac (born June 2, 1841), Elizabeth Susanna (nicknamed "Anna", born January 1, 1843), and John, Jr. (born April 1844). In 1843, John Surratt purchased from his adoptive father of land straddling the DC/Maryland border, a parcel named "Foxhall" (approximately the area between Wheeler Road and Owens Road today).Trindal, p. 22. Richard Neale died in September 1843, and a month later, John purchased of land adjoining Foxhall. John and Mary Surratt and their children moved back to John's childhood home in the District of Columbia in 1845 to help John's mother run the Neale farm. But Sarah Neale fell ill and died in August 1845, having shortly before her death deeded the remainder of the Neale farm to John. Mary Surratt became involved in raising funds to build St. Ignatius Church in Oxon Hill (it was constructed in 1850), but John was increasingly unhappy with his wife's religious activities.Larson, p. 13. His behavior deteriorated over the next few years. John drank heavily, often failed to pay his debts, and his temper was increasingly volatile and violent.Steers, 2001, p. 138-40.Kauffmann, p. 167. In 1851, the Neale farmhouse burned to the ground (an escaped family slave was suspected of setting the blaze). John found work on the
Orange and Alexandria Railroad The Orange and Alexandria Railroad (O&A) was a railroad in Virginia, United States. Chartered in 1848, it eventually extended from Alexandria to Gordonsville, with another section from Charlottesville to Lynchburg. The road played a crucial rol ...
. Mary moved with her children into the home of her cousin, Thomas Jenkins, in nearby Clinton."Surratt, Mary Eugenia Jenkins (1817–1865)," in ''Historical Dictionary of Reconstruction,'' p. 217. Within a year, John purchased of farmland near what is now Clinton, and by 1853, he constructed a tavern and an inn there. Mary initially refused to move herself and the children into the new residence. She took up residence on the old Neale farm, but John sold both the Neale farm and Foxhall in May 1853 to pay debts and she was forced to move back in with him in December.Larson, p. 18. With the money he earned from the tavern and sale of his other property, on December 6, 1853, John Surratt bought a townhouse at 541 H Street in Washington, D.C., and began renting it out to tenants.Chamlee, p. 165. In 1854, John built a hotel as an addition to his tavern and called it Surratt's Hotel. The area around the tavern was officially named Surrattsville that same year.Larson, p. 20. Travelers could take Branch Road (now Branch Avenue) north into Washington, D.C.; Piscataway Road southwest to
Piscataway Piscataway may refer to: *Piscataway people, a Native American ethnic group native to the southern Mid-Atlantic States *Piscataway language *Piscataway, Maryland, an unincorporated community *Piscataway, New Jersey, a township *Piscataway Creek, Ma ...
; or Woodyard Road northeast to Upper Marlboro. Although Surrattsville was a well-known crossroads,Steers, 2001, p. 80. the community did not amount to much: just the tavern, a
post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional se ...
(inside the tavern), a
forge A forge is a type of hearth used for heating metals, or the workplace (smithy) where such a hearth is located. The forge is used by the smith to heat a piece of metal to a temperature at which it becomes easier to shape by forging, or to th ...
, and a dozen or so houses (some of them log cabins). John Surratt was the hamlet's first postmaster.Busch, p. 17.Steers, 2010, p. 517. He expanded his family's holdings by selling off land, paying down debt, and starting new businesses. Over the next few years, Surratt acquired or built a
carriage house A carriage house, also called a remise or coach house, is an outbuilding which was originally built to house horse-drawn carriages and the related tack. In Great Britain the farm building was called a cart shed. These typically were open ...
,
corn crib A corn crib or corncrib is a type of granary used to dry and store corn. It may also be known as a cornhouse or corn house. Overview After the harvest and while still on the cob, corn is placed in the crib either with or without the husk. Th ...
, general store, forge,
granary A granary is a storehouse or room in a barn for threshed grain or animal feed. Ancient or primitive granaries are most often made of pottery. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals ...
,
gristmill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separat ...
,
stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...
, tobacco curing house, and wheelwright's shop. The family had enough money to send all three children to nearby Roman Catholic boarding schools. Isaac and John Jr. attended the school at St. Thomas Manor, and Anna enrolled at the Academy for Young Ladies (Mary's alma mater).Larson, p. 21. The family's debts continued to mount, however, and John Sr.'s drinking worsened. John sold another of land in 1856 to pay debts. By 1857, Surratt had sold all but of the family's formerly extensive holdings (which represented about half the he had originally owned).Commire and Klezmer, p. 23.James, p. 410. Most of the family's slaves were also sold to pay debts. Still, his alcoholism worsened. In 1858, Mary wrote a letter to her local priest, telling him that Surratt was drunk every single day. In 1860, St. Thomas Manor School closed, and Isaac found work in
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore wa ...
. The Surratts sold off another of land, which enabled Anna to remain at the Academy for Young Ladies and for John Jr. to enroll at
St. Charles College, Maryland St. Charles College was a minor seminary in Catonsville, Maryland, originally located in Ellicott City, Maryland. History Charles Carroll of Carrollton (1737–1832) was a signer of the Declaration of Independence for Maryland. One of the ...
(a Catholic seminary and boarding school in Ellicott's Mills).Cashin, p. 289. The couple also borrowed money that same year against their townhouse in Washington, DC, and at some point used the property as collateral for a $1,000 loan.


Civil War and widowhood

The
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...
began on April 12, 1861. The border state of Maryland remained part of the United States ("the Union"), but the Surratts were Confederate sympathizers,Cashin, p. 289. and their tavern regularly hosted fellow sympathizers.Larson, p. 24. The Surratt tavern was being used as a
safe house A safe house (also spelled safehouse) is, in a generic sense, a secret place for sanctuary or suitable to hide people from the law, hostile actors or actions, or from retribution, threats or perceived danger. It may also be a metaphor. Histori ...
for Confederate spies,Kauffmann, p. 155. and at least one author concludes that Mary had "
de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with '' de jure'' ("by l ...
" knowledge of this. Confederate scout and spy
Thomas Nelson Conrad Thomas Nelson Conrad (August 1, 1837 – January 5, 1905) was the third president of Virginia Tech (then Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College) and served in the Confederate Secret Service during the Civil War. Early life Thomas Nelson Co ...
visited Surratt's boarding house before and during the Civil War. On March 7, 1861, three days after
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...
's
inauguration In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inaugu ...
as
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal gove ...
, Isaac left Maryland and traveled to
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
, where he enlisted in the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
(serving in the 33rd Cavalry, or Duff's Partisan Rangers, 14th Cavalry Battalion). John Jr. quit his studies at St. Charles College in July 1861 and became a courier for the
Confederate Secret Service The Confederate Secret Service refers to any of a number of official and semi-official secret service organizations and operations conducted by the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Some of the organizations were under ...
, moving messages, cash, and contraband back and forth across enemy lines. The Confederate activities in and around Surrattsville drew the attention of the Union government. In late 1861, Lafayette C. Baker, a detective with the Union Intelligence Service, and 300 Union soldiers camped in Surrattsville and investigated the Surratts and others for Confederate activities.Chamlee, p. 102. He quickly uncovered evidence of a large Confederate courier network operating in the area, but despite some arrests and warnings, the courier network remained intact. John Surratt collapsed suddenly and died on either August 25Larson, p. 25. or August 26Schroeder-Lein and Zuczek, p. 286.Zanca, p. 20. in 1862 (sources differ as to the date). The cause of death was a
stroke A stroke is a disease, medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemorr ...
. The Surratt family affairs were in serious financial difficulties. John Jr. and Anna both left school to help their mother run the family's remaining farmland and businesses. On September 10, 1862, John Jr. was appointed postmaster of the Surrattsville post office.Trindal, p. 65.Kauffmann, p. 433. Lafayette Baker swept through Surrattsville again in 1862, and several postmasters were dismissed for disloyalty, but John Jr. was not one of them. In August 1863, he sought a job in the paymaster's department in the
United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, ...
, but his application caused federal agents to be suspicious about his family's loyalties to the Union. On November 17, 1863, he was dismissed as postmaster for disloyalty.Steers, 2001, p. 81. The loss of John Jr.'s job as postmaster caused a financial crisis for the Surratt family. When John Sr.'s estate was probated in late November 1862, the family owned only two middle-age male slaves. However, by 1863,
Louis J. Weichmann Louis J. Weichmann (September 29, 1842 – June 5, 1902) was an American clerk who was one of the chief witnesses for the prosecution in the trial following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Previously, he had been also a suspect in the con ...
, a friend of John Jr. from St. Charles College, observed that the family had six or more slaves working on the property. By 1864, Mary Surratt found that her husband's unpaid debts and bad business deals had left her with many creditors. Several of her slaves ran away. When he was not meeting with Confederate sympathizers in the city, her son was selling vegetables to raise cash for the family. Mary was tired of running the farm, tavern, and other businesses without her son's help. In the fall of 1864, she began considering moving to her townhouse in the city. On October 1, 1864, she took possession of the townhouse at 604 H Street NW in Washington, D.C. The gray brick house had four stories and stood on a lot wide, deep. The first floor, which was level with the street, had two large rooms, used as the kitchen and dining room.Larson, p. 39. The second floor had a front and back parlor, with the room in the rear used as Mary Surratt's bedroom. The third floor had three rooms: two in the front and a larger one at the back.Larson, p. 40. The fourth floor, which was considered an
attic An attic (sometimes referred to as a ''loft'') is a space found directly below the pitched roof of a house or other building; an attic may also be called a ''sky parlor'' or a garret. Because attics fill the space between the ceiling of the ...
, had two large and one small room, occupied by a servant. Surratt began moving her belongings into the townhouse that month, and on November 1, 1864, Anna and John Jr. took up residence there. Mary Surratt herself moved into the home on December 1. That same day, she leased the tavern in Surrattsville to a former Washington, D.C., policeman and Confederate sympathizer
John M. Lloyd John Minchin Lloyd (1835 — December 18, 1892) was a bricklayer and police officer in Washington, D.C., in the United States. He was one of the first police officers hired by the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia when its ...
for $500 a year.Larson, p. 38. On November 30, December 8, and December 27, Mary Surratt advertised for lodgers in the '' Daily Evening Star'' newspaper.Chamlee, p. 164-165. She had initially said that she wanted only lodgers who were known to her personally or were recommended by friends, but in her advertisements, she said rooms were "available for 4 gentlemen." Some scholars have raised questions about Surratt's move into the city. Historians Kate Larson and Roy Chamlee have noted that although there is no definite proof, a case can be made that Surratt made the move into the city in furtherance of her and her son's espionage activities. For example, Larson and Chamlee say that on September 21, 1864, John Surratt wrote to
Louis J. Weichmann Louis J. Weichmann (September 29, 1842 – June 5, 1902) was an American clerk who was one of the chief witnesses for the prosecution in the trial following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Previously, he had been also a suspect in the con ...
, observing that the family's plans to move into the city were advancing rapidly "on account of certain events having turned up," perhaps a cryptic reference to either his Confederate activities in general or the conspiracy to kidnap or kill Lincoln. Larson has observed that although the move made long-term economic sense for Surratt, it also, in the short term, would have meant moving expenses and furnishing up to 10 rooms in the townhouse, money that she did not have. Chamlee, too, found little economic reason to move into the city and concluded that it would have been more profitable to rent the H Street boarding house entirely to lodgers. During her time in the city, Surratt tried to keep her daughter away from what she felt were negative influences. Moreover, Surratt still owed money on both the tavern and the townhouse and would take out yet another mortgage against the townhouse in January 1865. John Jr. transferred all his title to the family property to his mother in January 1865. That act may have additional implications. A traitor's property could be seized, and John's spy knowledge was certainly his motivation for relinquishing his title to the houses and land. Mary may have known of his motivation as well or at least suspected. If she did, she would have possessed at least ''de facto'' knowledge of the conspiracy.


Conspiracy

Louis J. Weichmann Louis J. Weichmann (September 29, 1842 – June 5, 1902) was an American clerk who was one of the chief witnesses for the prosecution in the trial following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Previously, he had been also a suspect in the con ...
moved into Surratt's boarding house on November 1, 1864. On December 23, 1864, Dr.
Samuel Mudd Samuel Alexander Mudd Sr. (December 20, 1833 – January 10, 1883) was an American physician who was imprisoned for conspiring with John Wilkes Booth concerning the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Mudd worked as a doctor and tobacco far ...
introduced John Surratt Jr. to
John Wilkes Booth John Wilkes Booth (May 10, 1838 – April 26, 1865) was an American stage actor who assassinated United States President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. A member of the prominent 19th-century Booth ...
.Verge, p. 53. Booth recruited John Jr. into his conspiracy to kidnap Lincoln. Confederate agents began frequenting the boarding house.Evans, p. 288. Booth visited the boarding house many times over the next few months,Steers, 2010, p. 519. sometimes at Mary's request. George Atzerodt and Lewis Powell boarded at the townhouse for short periods. Atzerodt, a friend of both John Jr. and Booth and a co-conspirator in the plot to kidnap Lincoln, visited the boarding house several times in the first two months of 1865. He stayed at the Surratt boarding house in February 1865 (for one night or several, sources differ), but he proved to be a heavy drinker, and Surratt evicted him after just a few days.Heidler and Heidler, p. 1910. He continued to visit the townhouse frequently afterward, however.Rehnquist, p. 215. Powell posed as a Baptist preacher and stayed at the boarding house for three days in March 1865.
David Herold David Edgar Herold (June 16, 1842 – July 7, 1865) was an American pharmacist's assistant and accomplice of John Wilkes Booth in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln on April 14, 1865. After the shooting, Herold accompanied Booth to the home of ...
also called at the home several times. As part of the plot to kidnap Lincoln in March 1865, John, Atzerodt, and Herold hid two Spencer carbines, ammunition, and some other supplies at the Surratt tavern in Surrattsville.Turner, p. 155. On April 11, Mary Surratt rented a carriage and drove to the Surratt tavern.Larson, p. 77; Steers, 2010, p. 349; Kauffmann, p. 208. She said that she made the trip to collect a debt owed her by a former neighbor. However, according to her tenant, John Lloyd, Surratt told him to get the "shooting irons" ready to be picked up. On April 14, Surratt said that she would once again visit the family tavern in Surrattsville to collect a debt. Shortly before she left the city, Booth visited the boarding house and spoke privately with her.Larson, p. 83-84.Swanson, p. 19. He gave her a package, later found to contain
binoculars Binoculars or field glasses are two refracting telescopes mounted side-by-side and aligned to point in the same direction, allowing the viewer to use both eyes (binocular vision) when viewing distant objects. Most binoculars are sized to be held ...
, for Lloyd to pick up later that evening. Surratt did so and, according to Lloyd, again told Lloyd to have the "shooting irons" ready for pickup and handed him a wrapped package from Booth.Swanson, p. 22. Booth's plan was to assassinate Lincoln and have Atzerodt kill Vice President
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a De ...
and Powell kill Secretary of State William H. Seward. Booth killed Lincoln, Atzerodt never attempted to kill Johnson, and Powell stabbed Seward repeatedly but failed to murder him. As they fled the city after Lincoln's assassination, Booth and Herold picked up the rifles and binoculars from Surratt's tavern. Lloyd repaired a broken spring on Surratt's wagon before they left.


Arrest and incarceration

Around 2 a.m. on April 15, 1865, members of the District of Columbia police visited the Surratt boarding house, seeking John Wilkes Booth and John Surratt.Turner, p. 156.Steers, 2010, p. 173. Why the police came to the house is not entirely clear. Most historians conclude that Weichmann's friend, Department of War employee Daniel Gleason, had alerted federal authorities to Confederate activity centered on the Surratt house, but that does not explain why police rather than federal agents appeared there. (Historian Roy Chamlee, however, says that there is evidence that Gleason did not tell police about his suspicions of Weichmann for several days.) Within 45 minutes of the attack on Lincoln, John Surratt's name had become associated with the attack on Secretary of State William H. Seward.Chamlee, p. 11. The police as well as the
Provost Marshal Provost marshal is a title given to a person in charge of a group of Military Police (MP). The title originated with an older term for MPs, '' provosts'', from the Old French ''prévost'' (Modern French ''prévôt''). While a provost marshal i ...
's office both had files on John Surratt Jr. and knew he was a close friend of Booth. (It is possible that either James L. Maddox, property supervisor at
Ford's Theatre Ford's Theatre is a theater located in Washington, D.C., which opened in August 1863. The theater is infamous for being the site of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. On the night of April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth entered the theater bo ...
and a friend of Booth's, or actor John Matthews, both of whom may have known about the plot to attack government officials, mentioned Surratt's name.) Historian
Otto Eisenschiml Otto Eisenschiml (June 16, 1880 – December 7, 1963) was an Austrian-born chemist and industrial executive in the American oil industry, and a controversial author. He may be best known for his provocative 1937 book on the assassination of ...
has argued that David Herold's attempt to steal a horse from John Fletcher may have led them to the Surratt boarding house, but at least one other scholar has called the link uncertain. Other sources claim that eyewitnesses had identified Booth as Lincoln's attacker, and the detectives had information (a tip from an unnamed actor and a bartender) linking John, Jr., to Booth. Mary lied to the detectives that her son had been in Canada for two weeks. She also did not reveal that she had delivered a package to the tavern on Booth's behalf only hours earlier.Steers, 2010, p. 174. On April 17, a Surratt neighbor told U.S. military authorities that he overheard one of the Surratt's servants saying that three men had come to the house on the night of Lincoln's assassination and that one of the men had mentioned Booth in a theater.Turner, p. 157. (The servant was mistaken about the date, as John Surratt, Jr. had indeed been in
Elmira, New York Elmira () is a city and the county seat of Chemung County, New York, United States. It is the principal city of the Elmira, New York, metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses Chemung County. The population was 26,523 at the 2020 censu ...
, on a mission for a Confederate general).Steers, 2010, p. 177. Other pieces of information also mentioned the boarding house as a key meeting place of the possible conspirators. Either Colonel Henry H. Wells, Provost Marshal (head of the military police) of the District of Columbia, or General
Christopher C. Augur Christopher Columbus Augur (July 10, 1821 – January 16, 1898) was an American military officer, most noted for his role in the American Civil War. Although less well known than other Union commanders, he was nonetheless considered an able battl ...
told Colonel
Henry Steel Olcott Colonel Henry Steel Olcott (2 August 1832 – 17 February 1907) was an American military officer, journalist, lawyer, Freemason and the co-founder and first president of the Theosophical Society. Olcott was the first well-known American of Euro ...
to arrest everyone in the house. Federal soldiers visited the Surratt boarding house again late on the evening of April 17.Verge, p. 52-53. John Jr. could not be found, but after a search of the house, the agents found in Mary's room a picture of Booth, hidden behind another photograph, pictures of Confederate leaders including
Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as ...
, a pistol, a mold for making bullets, and
percussion cap The percussion cap or percussion primer, introduced in the early 1820s, is a type of single-use percussion ignition device for muzzle loader firearm locks enabling them to fire reliably in any weather condition. This crucial invention gave rise ...
s.Trindal, p. 267. As Mary was being arrested for conspiracy to assassinate Lincoln, Powell appeared at her door in disguise.Verge, p. 54.Cashin, p. 291. Although Surratt denied knowing him, Powell claimed that he was a laborer hired by Surratt to dig a ditch the next morning. The discrepancy and Powell's remarkably well-dressed and -groomed appearance, quite unlike a ditch-digger, prompted his arrest. He was later identified as the man who had attempted to assassinate Secretary of State
William Seward William Henry Seward (May 16, 1801 – October 10, 1872) was an American politician who served as United States Secretary of State from 1861 to 1869, and earlier served as governor of New York and as a United States Senator. A determined oppon ...
. After her arrest, she was held at an annex to the
Old Capitol Prison The Old Brick Capitol in Washington, D.C., served as the temporary Capitol of the United States from 1815 to 1819. The building was a private school, a boarding house, and, during the American Civil War, a prison known as the Old Capitol Pris ...
before being transferred to the
Washington Arsenal Fort Lesley J. McNair is a United States Army post located on the tip of Greenleaf Point, the peninsula that lies at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. To the peninsula's west is the Washington Channe ...
on April 30. Two armed guards stood before the door to her cell from the beginning of her imprisonment until her death. Her cell, while airy and larger than the others,Watts, p. 88. was sparsely furnished, with a straw mattress, table, wash basin, chair, and a bucket.Trindal, p. 147.Weichmann and Richards, p. 318. Food was served four times a day, always of bread; salt pork, beef, or beef soup; and coffee or water. The other arrested conspirators had their heads enclosed in a padded canvas bag to prevent a suicide attempt.Klement, p. 35; Miller, p. 251-252. Sources disagree as to whether Surratt was also forced to wear it. Although the others wore iron
manacles Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists in proximity to each other. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each cuff has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that ...
on their feet and ankles, she was not manacled. (Rumors to the contrary were raised by reporters at the trial who could not see her or "heard" the clank of chains about her feet. The rumors were repeatedly investigated and denied.)Turner, p. 158-159. She began to suffer menstrual bleeding and became weak during her detention. She was given a rocking chair and allowed visits from her daughter, Anna.Goodrich, p. 274Trindal, p. 192. She and Powell received the most attention from the press.Kunhardt and Kunhardt, p. 198. The Northern press was also highly critical of her, claiming that she had a "criminal face" due to her small mouth and dark eyes. John Surratt Jr. was in Elmira at the time of the assassination, delivering messages on behalf of a Confederate general. After learning of Lincoln's death, he fled to
Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...
, Canada.


Trial

The trial for the alleged conspirators began on May 9. A military tribunal, rather than a civilian court, was chosen as the venue because government officials thought that its more lenient rules of evidence would enable the court to get to the bottom of what was then perceived by the public as a vast conspiracy. All eight alleged conspirators were tried simultaneously. Historians have conflicting views regarding Surratt's innocence. Historian Laurie Verge commented, "Only in the case of Dr. Samuel Alexander Mudd is there as much controversy as to the guilt or innocence of one of the defendants."Verge, p. 51. Lincoln assassination scholar Thomas Reed Turner says that of the eight people accused of plotting to kill Lincoln, the case against Surratt remains "the most controversial... at that time and since." A room on the northeast corner of the third floor of the Arsenal was made into a courtroom, and the prisoners were brought into the room through a side door, which prevented them from passing by or being harassed by spectators. Surratt was given special considerations during the trial because of her illness and gender. In the courtroom, she sat apart from the other prisoners. Sources differ as to whether an armed guard sat on either side of her, as was done for other prisoners during the trial.Jampoler, p. 21. While the others wore wrist and ankle manacles in the courtroom, she did not.Chamlee, p. 440. She was also permitted a bonnet, fan, and veil to hide her face from spectators. As her illness worsened during the trial, she was moved to a larger and more comfortable prison cell. Surratt was charged with abetting, aiding, concealing, counseling, and harboring her co-defendants. The federal government initially attempted to find legal counsel for her and the others, but almost no attorneys were willing to take the job for fear they would be accused of disloyalty to the Union.Boritt and Forness, p. 352. Surratt retained Reverdy Johnson as her legal counsel. A member of the military commission trying the conspirators challenged Johnson's right to defend Surratt, as he had objected to requiring loyalty oaths from voters in the 1864 presidential election. After much discussion, this objection was withdrawn, but damage had been done to his influence, and he did not attend most of the court sessions. Most of Surratt's legal defense was presented by two other lawyers:
Frederick Aiken Frederick Augustus Aiken (September 20, 1832 – December 23, 1878) was an American lawyer, journalist and soldier. A veteran of the Civil War, Aiken was called on to serve as one of the defense attorneys for Mary Surratt, who was tried for consp ...
and John Wesley Clampitt. The prosecution's strategy was to tie Surratt to the conspiracy. Powell's arrival at her boarding house, three days after the president's murder, was critical evidence against her, the government argued. The prosecution presented nine witnesses, but most of their case rested on the testimony of just two men:
John M. Lloyd John Minchin Lloyd (1835 — December 18, 1892) was a bricklayer and police officer in Washington, D.C., in the United States. He was one of the first police officers hired by the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia when its ...
and
Louis J. Weichmann Louis J. Weichmann (September 29, 1842 – June 5, 1902) was an American clerk who was one of the chief witnesses for the prosecution in the trial following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Previously, he had been also a suspect in the con ...
. Lloyd testified on May 13 and 15, 1865Leonard, p. 109. on the hiding of the carbines and other supplies at the tavern in March and the two conversations he had with her in which she told him to get the "shooting irons" ready. Weichmann's testimony was important, as it established an intimate relationship between her and the other conspirators. Weichmann testified May 16 to 19 and said that he had resided at the boarding house since November 1864. He had seen or overheard John Jr. meeting and talking with Atzerodt, Booth, and Powell many times over the past four and a half months.Verge, p. 55. Weichmann had driven Surratt to the tavern on April 11 and 14, confirmed that she and Lloyd had spent much time in private conversation, testified that he saw Booth give her the package of binoculars, and attested that she had turned the package over to Lloyd.Leonard, p. 108. Weichmann also testified at length about the Surratt family's ties to the Confederate spy and courier rings operating in the area and their relationships with Atzerodt and Powell. He also testified about the December 23 meeting with Booth and John (which he also attended) and their subsequent meeting with Booth at Booth's room at the National Hotel. Finally, he told the military tribunal about the general excitement in the boarding house in March 1865 after the failed attempt to kidnap Lincoln. Other prosecution witnesses reinforced Weichmann's testimony. Lodger Honora Fitzpatrick confirmed visits by Atzerodt, Booth, and Powell to the boarding house. Emma Offut, Lloyd's sister-in-law, testified that she saw (but did not hear) Surratt speaking for long periods of time with Lloyd on April 11 and 14. Government agents testified about their arrest of Surratt, Powell's arrival, and her denial that she knew Powell. The fact that Powell sought refuge in the boarding house after Lincoln's murder left a bad impression of her. Surratt's refusal (or failure) to recognize him also weighed against her. The agents also testified about their search of the house, and the evidence (the photographs, the weapons, etc.) discovered there. Lloyd's testimony was the most important for the prosecution's case, for it indicated that she had played an active role in the conspiracy in the days before Lincoln's death.Verge, p. 56. The prosecution rested its case on May 22. The defense strategy was to impeach the testimony of the key prosecution witnesses: Lloyd and Weichmann. It also wished to show that she was loyal to the Union, her trips to Surrattsville were of an innocent nature, and she had not been aware of Booth's plans. There were 31 witnesses who testified for the defense. George H. Calvert testified that he had pressed Surratt to pay a debt, Bennett Gwynn said Surratt had sought payment from John Nothey to satisfy the Calvert debt, and Nothey agreed that he had received a letter from Surratt for him to appear at the tavern on April 11 to pay what was owed. Several witnesses impugned Lloyd's character by testifying about his alcoholism, while others said he was too intoxicated on the day of Lincoln's assassination to remember that day clearly.Leonard, p. 118. Augustus Howell, a Confederate agent, testified Weichmann was an untrustworthy witness, as he had sought to become a Confederate spy himself.Verge, p. 56-57. (The prosecution had attempted to show that Howell was a Confederate spy and should not be trusted.)Verge, p. 57. Anna Surratt testified that it was Weichmann who had brought Atzerodt into the boarding house, that the photograph of Booth was hers, and that she owned photographs of Union political and military leaders. Anna denied ever overhearing any discussions of disloyal activities or ideas in the boarding house, and that Booth's visits to the house were always short. Anna explained her mother's failure to recognize Powell by asserting she could not see well.Leonard, p. 119. Augusta Howell, a former servant, and Honora Fitzpatrick, a former slave, testified to Mary's poor eyesight as well.Leonard, p. 120. The former servant and the former slave both said Surratt had given Union soldiers food.Leonard, p. 120. Numerous witnesses were called at the end of the defense's case to testify to her loyalty to the Union, her deep Christian faith, and her kindness. During the prosecution's rebuttal, government lawyers called four witnesses to the stand, who testified as to Weichmann's unimpeachable character. Johnson and Aiken presented the closing arguments for the defense. Johnson attacked the
jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' + 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, areas of jurisdiction apply to local, state, and federal levels. J ...
of a military tribunal over civilians, as had Mudd's attorney. Aiken also challenged the court's jurisdiction. He also reiterated that Lloyd and Weichmann were unreliable witnesses and that the evidence against her was all circumstantial.Verge, p. 58. The only evidence linking Surratt to the conspiracy to kill Lincoln, he said, came from Lloyd and Weichmann, and neither man was telling the truth. (
Dorothy Kunhardt Dorothy Kunhardt (née Dorothy Meserve; September 29, 1901 – December 23, 1979) was an American children's-book author, best known for the baby book ''Pat the Bunny.'' She was also a historian and writer about the life of U.S. President Abraha ...
has written that there is evidence the latter's perjured testimony was
suborn In American law, Scots law, and under the laws of some English-speaking Commonwealth nations, subornation of perjury is the crime of persuading or permitting a person to commit perjury, which is the swearing of a false oath to tell the truth in ...
ed by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.)
Judge Advocate Judge-advocates are military lawyers serving in different capacities in the military justice systems of different jurisdictions. Australia The Australian Army Legal Corps (AALC) consists of Regular and Reserve commissioned officers that prov ...
John Bingham John Armor Bingham (January 21, 1815 – March 19, 1900) was an American politician who served as a Republican representative from Ohio and as the United States ambassador to Japan. In his time as a congressman, Bingham served as both ass ...
presented the closing argument for the prosecution. The military tribunal had jurisdiction, he said, not only because the court itself had ruled at the beginning of the trials that it did but because they were crimes committed in a military zone, during a time of war, and against high government officials in carrying out treasonous activities. Bingham pointed out that the Surratt boarding house was where the conspiracy was planned, and Atzerodt, Booth, and Powell had all met with Surratt. Booth had paid for the rental of the carriage that took Surratt to Surrattsville each time, and Bingham said that was evidence that Surratt's trips were critical to the conspiracy. Bingham also said that Lloyd's testimony had been corroborated by others and that his unwillingness to reveal the cache of weapons in the tavern was prompted by his subservient tenant relationship to Surratt. Bingham concluded by reiterating the government's key point: Powell had returned to the Surratt house seeking Surratt, and that alone was proof of her guilt. Bingham also pointed out for the tribunal that the charge a person was indicted for was irrelevant. Under the law of conspiracy, if one person carries out a crime, all conspirators are guilty of the same crime. The trial ended on June 28, 1865.Chamlee, p. 434. Surratt was so ill the last four days of the trial that she was permitted to stay in her cell. In the opinion of historian Roy Z. Chamlee, both legal teams appeared to have flaws in their cases, and except for Reverdy Johnson, neither team employed highly skilled attorneys. The government's case was hindered by its failure to call as a witness the man who shared Lloyd's carriage when he talked with Surratt and could have verified Lloyd's version of the "shooting irons" story or Metropolitan Police Chief A.C. Richards whose investigation had had the most success in the early days of the investigation. The government did not fully investigate Booth's meetings with Surratt at noon or the evening of the murder, and its questioning and cross-examination of witnesses was poorly prepared and weak. What is most important, according to historian Roy Z. Chamber Jr., is that the government had botched the attempt to apprehend John Jr. The defense's case, too, had a problem. The defense never followed up on inconsistencies in Weichmann's chronology of Mary's last visit to the tavern, which could have undermined Weichmann's entire credibility. The military tribunal considered guilt and sentencing on June 29 and 30. Surratt's guilt was the second-last to be considered, as her case had problems of evidence and witness reliability. The sentence was handed down on June 30.Steers, "'Let the Stain of Innocent Blood...", 2010, p. 189. The military tribunal found her guilty on all charges but two. A death sentence required six of the nine votes of the judges. Surratt was sentenced to death, the first woman
executed Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
by the federal government.Griffin, p. 152.Gillespie, p. 68. The sentence was announced publicly on July 5.Cashin, p. 299. When Powell learned of his sentence, he declared that she was completely innocent of all charges.Chamlee, p. 454-456. The night before the execution, Surratt's priests and Anna Surratt both visited Powell and elicited from him a strong statement declaring Mary innocent. Although it was delivered to Captain Christian Rath, who was overseeing the execution, Powell's statement had no effect on anyone with authority to prevent Surratt's death.Chamlee, p. 462. George Atzerodt bitterly condemned her, implicating her even further in the conspiracy. Powell's was the only statement by any conspirator exonerating Surratt. Anna Surratt pleaded repeatedly for her mother's life with Judge Advocate General
Joseph Holt Joseph Holt (January 6, 1807 – August 1, 1894) was an American lawyer, soldier, and politician. As a leading member of the Buchanan administration, he succeeded in convincing Buchanan to oppose the secession of the South. He returned to Ke ...
, but he refused to consider clemency. She also attempted to see President
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a De ...
several times to beg for mercy but was not granted permission to see him. Five of the nine judges signed a letter asking President Johnson to give Surratt clemency and commute her sentence to life in prison because of her age and sex.Kunhardt and Kunhardt, p. 204. Holt did not deliver the recommendation to Johnson until July 5, two days before Surratt and the others were to hang. Johnson signed the order for execution but did not sign the order for clemency. Johnson later said he never saw the clemency request; Holt said he showed it to Johnson, who refused to sign it. Johnson, according to Holt, said in signing the death warrant that she had "kept the nest that hatched the egg."


Execution

Construction of the
gallows A gallows (or scaffold) is a frame or elevated beam, typically wooden, from which objects can be suspended (i.e., hung) or "weighed". Gallows were thus widely used to suspend public weighing scales for large and heavy objects such as sacks ...
for the hanging of the conspirators condemned to death began immediately on July 5, after the execution order was signed. It was constructed in the south part of the Arsenal courtyard, was high and about in size.Leonard, p. 131. Rath, who oversaw the preparations for the executions, made the nooses.Swanson and Weinberg, p. 31. Tired of making nooses and thinking that the government would never hang a woman, he made Surratt's noose the night before the execution with five loops rather than the regulation seven. He tested the nooses that night by tying them to a tree limb and a bag of
buckshot A shotgun shell, shotshell or simply shell is a type of rimmed, cylindrical (straight-walled) cartridges used specifically in shotguns, and is typically loaded with numerous small, pellet-like spherical sub-projectiles called shot, fired thro ...
and then tossing the bag to the ground (the ropes held). Civilian workers did not want to dig the graves out of superstitious fear, so Rath asked for volunteers among the soldiers at the Arsenal and received more help than he needed. At noon on July 6, Surratt was informed she would be hanged the next day. She wept profusely. She was joined by two Catholic priests (Jacob Walter and B.F. Wiget) and her daughter Anna. Father Jacob remained with her almost until her death. Her menstrual problems had worsened, and she was in such pain and suffered from such severe cramps that the prison doctor gave her wine and medication. She repeatedly asserted her innocence. She spent the night on her mattress, weeping and moaning in pain and grief, ministered to by the priests.Goodrich, p. 276. Anna left her mother's side at 8 A.M. on July 7 and went to the White House to beg for her mother's life one last time. Her entreaty rejected, she returned to the prison and her mother's cell at about 11 A.M.Goodrich, p. 279. The soldiers began testing the gallows about 11:25 A.M.; the sound of the tests unnerved all the prisoners.Chamlee, p. 469. Shortly before noon, Mary Surratt was taken from her cell and then allowed to sit in a chair near the entrance to the courtyard. The heat in the city that day was oppressive. By noon, it had already reached . The guards ordered all visitors to leave at 12:30 P.M. When she was forced to part from her mother, Anna's hysterical screams of grief could be heard throughout the prison.Chamlee, p. 470. Clampitt and Aiken had not finished trying to save their client, however. On the morning of July 7, they asked a District of Columbia court for a
writ of habeas corpus ''Habeas corpus'' (; from Medieval Latin, ) is a recourse in law through which a person can report an unlawful detention or imprisonment to a court and request that the court order the custodian of the person, usually a prison official, t ...
, arguing that the military tribunal had no jurisdiction over their client.Watts, p. 101.Trindal, p. 211.Steers, 2010, p. 4. The court issued the writ at 3 A.M., and it was served on General
Winfield Scott Hancock Winfield Scott Hancock (February 14, 1824 – February 9, 1886) was a United States Army officer and the Democratic nominee for President of the United States in 1880. He served with distinction in the Army for four decades, including service ...
.Jordan, p. 178. Hancock was ordered to produce Surratt by 10 A.M. General Hancock sent an aide to General
John F. Hartranft John Frederick Hartranft (December 16, 1830 – October 17, 1889) was the United States military officer who read the death warrant to the individuals who were executed on July 7, 1865 for conspiring to assassinate American President Abraham Li ...
, who commanded the Old Capitol Prison, ordering him not to admit any US marshal, as that would prevent the marshal from serving a similar writ on Hartranft. Johnson was informed that the court had issued the writ and promptly cancelled it at 11:30 A.M. under the authority granted to him by the Habeas Corpus Suspension Act of 1863. General Hancock and
United States Attorney General The United States attorney general (AG) is the head of the United States Department of Justice, and is the chief law enforcement officer of the federal government of the United States. The attorney general serves as the principal advisor to the p ...
James Speed personally appeared in court and informed the judge of the cancellation of the writ. On July 7, 1865, at 1:15 P.M.,Jordan, p. 179.Leonard, p. 132. a procession led by General Hartranft escorted the four condemned prisoners through the courtyard and up the steps to the gallows. Each prisoner's ankles and wrists were bound by manacles.Swanson and Weinberg, p. 29. Surratt led the way,Swanson, p. 364. wearing a black
bombazine Bombazine, or bombasine, is a fabric originally made of silk or silk and wool, and now also made of cotton and wool or of wool alone. Quality bombazine is made with a silk warp and a worsted weft. It is twilled or corded and used for dress- ...
dress, black
bonnet A Bonnet is a variety of headgear, hat or cap Specific types of headgear referred to as "bonnets" may include Scottish * Blue bonnet, a distinctive woollen cap worn by men in Scotland from the 15th-18th centuries And its derivations: ** Fea ...
, and black veil.Pitman, p. 435.Chamlee, p. 471. More than 1,000 people, including government officials, members of the US armed forces, friends and family of the accused, official witnesses, and reporters, watched.Leonard, p. 134. General Hancock limited attendance to those who had a ticket, and only those who had a good reason to be present were given a ticket.Swanson and Weinberg, p. 24. (Most of those present were military officers and soldiers, as fewer than 200 tickets had been printed.) Alexander Gardner, who had photographed the body of Booth and taken portraits of several of the male conspirators while they were imprisoned aboard naval ships, photographed the execution for the government. Hartranft read the order for their execution. Surratt, either weak from her illness or swooning in fear (perhaps both), had to be supported by two soldiers and her priests. The condemned were seated in chairs, Surratt almost collapsing into hers. She was seated to the right of the others, the traditional "seat of honor" in an execution. White cloth was used to bind their arms to their sides and their ankles and thighs together. The cloths around Surratt's legs were tied around her dress below the knees. Each person was ministered to by a member of the clergy. From the scaffold, Powell said, "Mrs. Surratt is innocent. She doesn't deserve to die with the rest of us."Kunhardt and Kunhardt, pp. 210–211. Fathers Jacob and Wiget prayed over her and held a crucifix to her lips. About 16 minutes elapsed from the time the prisoners entered the courtyard until they were ready for execution. A white bag was placed over the head of each prisoner after the noose was put in place. Surratt's bonnet was removed, and the noose put around her neck by a
U.S. Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security charged with conducting criminal investigations and protecting U.S. political leaders, their families, and ...
officer.Watts, p. 102. She complained that the bindings about her arms hurt, and the officer preparing said, "Well, it won't hurt long."Swanson, p. 365. Finally, the prisoners were asked to stand and move forward a few feet to the nooses. The chairs were removed. Her last words, spoken to a guard as he moved her forward to the drop, were "Please don't let me fall." Surratt and the others stood on the drop for about 10 seconds, and then Captain Rath clapped his hands. Four soldiers of Company F of the 14th Veteran Reserves knocked out the supports holding the drops in place, and the condemned fell. Surratt, who had moved forward enough to barely step onto the drop, lurched forward and slid partway down the drop, her body snapping tight at the end of the rope, swinging back and forth. She appeared to die relatively quickly with little struggle. Atzerodt's stomach heaved once and his legs quivered; then, he was still.Kauffmann, p. 374.Katz, p. 184. Herold and Powell struggled for nearly five minutes, strangling to death.


Burial

Each body was inspected by a physician to ensure that death had occurred. The bodies of the executed were allowed to hang for about 30 minutes and soldiers began to cut them down at 1:53 p.m. A corporal raced to the top of the gallows and cut down Atzerodt's body, which fell to the ground with a thud. He was reprimanded, and the other bodies were cut down more gently. Herold's body was next, followed by Powell's. Surratt's body was cut down at 1:58 p.m. As Surratt's body was cut loose, her head fell forward. A soldier joked, "She makes a good bow" and was rebuked by an officer for his poor use of humor. Upon examination, the military surgeons determined that no one's neck had been broken by the fall. The manacles and cloth bindings were removed but not the white execution masks, and the bodies were placed into the pine coffins. The name of each person was written on a piece of paper by acting Assistant Adjutant R. A. Watts, and inserted in a glass vial, which was placed into the coffin. The coffins were buried against the prison wall in shallow graves, just a few feet from the gallows. A white picket fence marked the burial site.Ownsbey, p. 152. The night that she died, a mob attacked the Surratt boarding house and began stripping it of souvenirs until the police stopped them. Anna Surratt unsuccessfully asked for her mother's body for four years.Trindal, p. 230. In 1867, the War Department decided to tear down the portion of the Washington Arsenal where the bodies of Surratt and the other executed conspirators lay.Steers, 2001, p. 257. On October 1, 1867, the coffins were disinterred and reburied in Warehouse No. 1 at the Arsenal, with a wooden marker placed at the head of each burial vault. Booth's body lay alongside them. In February 1869, Edwin Booth asked Johnson for the body of his brother. Johnson agreed to turn the body over to the Booth family, and on February 8 Surratt's body was turned over to the Surratt family.Steers, 2010, p. 513.Johnson, p. 420. She was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Washington, D.C., on February 9, 1869. Lloyd is buried from her grave in the same cemetery.


Surviving family and home

Anna Surratt moved from the townhouse on H Street and lived with friends for a few years, ostracized from society.Chamlee, p. 556. She married William Tonry, a government clerk. They lived in poverty for a while after he was dismissed from his job, but in time, he became a professor of chemistry in
Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...
and the couple became better off. The strain of her mother's death left Anna mentally unbalanced, and she suffered from periods of extreme fear that bordered on insanity. She died in 1904. After the dismissal of charges against him, John Jr. married and he and his family lived in Baltimore near his sister, Anna. Isaac Surratt also returned to the United States and lived in Baltimore. He died unmarried in 1907. Isaac and Anna were buried on either side of their mother in Mount Olivet Cemetery. John Jr. was buried in Baltimore in 1916. In 1968, a new headstone with a brass plaque replaced the old, defaced headstone over Mary Surratt's grave. Mary Surratt's boarding house still stands and was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 2009. Those interested in Mary Surratt formed the Surratt Society. The Surrattsville tavern and
house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...
are historical sites run today by the Surratt Society as a
historic house museum A historic house museum is a house of historic significance that has been transformed into a museum. Historic furnishings may be displayed in a way that reflects their original placement and usage in a home. Historic house museums are held to a ...
. The Washington Arsenal is now
Fort Lesley J. McNair Fort Lesley J. McNair is a United States Army post located on the tip of Greenleaf Point, the peninsula that lies at the confluence of the Potomac River and the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. To the peninsula's west is the Washington Channe ...
.


Portrayals

Surratt was portrayed by
actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
Virginia Gregg Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...
in the 1956 episode "The Mary Surratt Case," telecast as part of the
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
anthology series An anthology series is a radio, television, video game or film series that spans different genres and presents a different story and a different set of characters in each different episode, season, segment, or short. These usually have a dif ...
'' The Joseph Cotten Show''. She was portrayed by
Robin Wright Robin Gayle Wright (born April 8, 1966) is an American actress. She has won a Golden Globe Award and a Satellite Award, and has received eleven Emmy Award nominations for her work in television. Wright first gained attention for her role in t ...
in the 2011 film '' The Conspirator'', which was directed by
Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award from four nominations, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, the Cec ...
.


References


Sources

*Boritt, G.S. and Forness, Norman O. ''The Historian's Lincoln: Pseudohistory, Psychohistory, and History.'' Urbana, Ill.: University of Illinois Press, 1996. *Bryer, Jackson R. ''New Essays on F. Scott Fitzgerald's Neglected Stories.'' Columbia, Mo.: University of Missouri Press, 1996. *Buchanan, Paul D. ''The American Women's Rights Movement: A Chronology of Events and of Opportunities From 1600 to 2008.'' Boston: Branden Books, 2009. *Bucklee, Sally Mitchell. ''A Church and Its Village: St. Philip's Episcopal Church, Laurel, Maryland.'' Baltimore, Md.: Gateway Press, 2001. *Busch, Francis X. ''Enemies of the state: An Account of the Trials of the Mary Eugenia Surrat Case, the Teapot Dome Cases, the Alphonse Capone Case and the Rosenburg Case.'' Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1954. *Cashin, Joan. ''The War Was You and Me: Civilians in the American Civil War.'' Princeton, N.J.: Princeton Univ. Press, 2002. *Chaconas, Joan L. "John H. Surratt, Jr." In ''The Trial: The Assassination of President Lincoln and the Trial of the Conspirators.'' Lexington, Ky.: University Press of Kentucky, 2003. *Chamlee, Jr., Roy Z. ''Lincoln's Assassins: A Complete Account of Their Capture, Trial, and Punishment.'' Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co., 1989. * Commire, Anne and Klezmer, Deborah. '' Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia.'' Waterford, Conn.: Yorkin Publications, 2001. *DeWitt, David Miller. ''The Judicial Murder of Mary E. Surratt''. J. Murphy & Co., 1894. *Eisenschiml, Otto. ''Why Was Lincoln Murdered?'' New York: Grosset & Dunlap, 1937. * Evans, Eli N. ''Judah P. Benjamin, the Jewish Confederate.'' New York: Simon and Schuster, 1989. *Federal Writers' Project. ''Washington, D.C.: A Guide to the Nation's Capital.'' New York: Hastings House, 1942. *Fishel, Edwin C. ''Secret War for the Union.'' New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1996. *Gamber, Wendy. ''The Boardinghouse in Nineteenth-Century America.'' Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007. *Gillespie, L. Kay. ''Executed Women of the 20th and 21st Centuries.'' Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 2009. *Goodrich, Thomas. ''The Darkest Dawn: Lincoln, Booth, and the Great American Tragedy.'' Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 2005. *Griffin, John Chandler. ''Abraham Lincoln's Execution.'' Gretna, La.: Pelican Publishing Co., 2006. *Harris, Thomas Mealey. ''Assassination of Lincoln: A History of the Great Conspiracy, Trial of the Conspirators by a Military Commission, and a Review of the Trial of John H. Surratt.'' Boston: American Citizen Company, 1892. *Hartranft, John F.; Steers, Edward; and Holzer, Harold. ''The Lincoln Assassination Conspirators: Their Confinement and Execution, As Recorded in the Letterbook of John Frederick Hartranft.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 2009. *Heidler, David Stephen; Heidler, Jeanne T.; and Coles, David J. ''Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History.'' New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2000. *Isacsson, Alfred. ''The Travels, Arrest and Trial of John H. Surratt.'' Middletown, N.Y.: Vestigium Press, 2003. *James, Edward T. ''Notable American Women: A Biographical Dictionary.'' Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2004. *Jampoler, Andrew C.A. ''The Last Lincoln Conspirator: John Surratt's Flight From the Gallows.'' Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press, 2008. *Johnson, Andrew. ''The Papers of Andrew Johnson: September 1868 – April 1869.'' Paul H. Bergeron, ed. Knoxville, Tenn.: University of Tennessee Press, 1999. *Johnson, Scott Patrick. ''Trials of the Century: An Encyclopedia of Popular Culture and the Law.'' Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2011. *Jones, John P. ''Dr. Mudd and the Lincoln Assassination: The Case Reopened.'' Conshohocken, Pa.: Combined Books, 1995. *Jordan, David M. ''Winfield Scott Hancock: A Soldier's Life.'' Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1988. *Katz, D. Mark. ''Witness to an Era: The Life and Photographs of Alexander Gardner: The Civil War, Lincoln, and the West.'' New York: Viking, 1991. *Kauffman, Michael W. ''American Brutus.'' New York: Random House, 2004. *Klement, Frank. ''Lincoln's Critics: The Copperheads of the North.'' Shippensburg, W.Va.: White Mane Books, 1999. *Kuhn, Annette. ''Queen of the 'B's: Ida Lupino Behind the Camera.'' Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1995. * *Larson, Kate Clifford. ''The Assassin's Accomplice: Mary Surratt and the Plot to Kill Abraham Lincoln''. Basic Books, 2008. *Latimer, Christopher P. ''Civil Liberties and the State: A Documentary and Reference Guide.'' Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood, 2011. *Leonard, Elizabeth D. ''Lincoln's Avengers: Justice, Revenge, and Reunion After the Civil War.'' New York: Norton, 2004. *MacHenry, Robert. ''Liberty's Women.'' Springfield, Mass.: G.C. Merriam Co., 1980. *Miller, Edward A. ''Lincoln's Abolitionist General: The Biography of David Hunter.'' Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press, 1997. *Morseberger, Robert E. and Morsberger, Katharine M. ''Lew Wallace, Militant Romantic.'' New York: McGraw-Hill, 1980. *Oldroyd, Osborn H. ''The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Flight, Pursuit, Capture, and Punishment of the Conspirators.'' Washington, D.C.: O.H. Oldroyd, 1901. *Ownsbey, Betty J. ''Alias 'Paine': Lewis Thorthon Powell, the Mystery Man of the Lincoln Conspiracy.'' Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Company, 2006. *Phelps, Shirelle. ''World of Criminal Justice, Vol. 2: N-Z.'' Detroit: Gale Group, 2001. *Phillips, Larissa. ''Women Civil War Spies of the Confederacy.'' New York: Rosen Publishing Group, 2004. *Pittman, Benn. ''The Assassination of President Lincoln and the Trial of the Conspirators.'' Cincinnati: Moore, Wilstach & Baldwin, 1865. *Rehnquist, William H. ''All the Laws But One: Civil Liberties in Wartime.'' New York: Vintage Books, 2000. *Roscoe, Theodore. ''The Web of Conspiracy: The Complete Story of the Men Who Murdered Abraham Lincoln.'' Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1959. *Sachsman, David B.; Rushing, S. Kittrell; and Morris, Roy. ''Seeking A Voice: Images of Race and Gender in the 19th Century Press.'' West Lafayette, Ind.: Purdue University Press, 2009. *Schroeder-Lein, Glenna R. and Zuczek, Richard. ''Andrew Johnson: A Biographical Companion.'' Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2001. *Steers, Jr., Edward. ''Blood on the Moon.'' Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2001. *Steers, Jr., Edward. "'Let the Stain of Innocent Blood Be Removed from the Land': The Military Trial of the Lincoln Conspirators." In ''The Lincoln Assassination: Crime and Punishment, Myth and Memory.'' Harold Holzer, Craig L. Symonds, and Frank J. Williams, eds. New York: Fordham University Press, 2010. *Steers, Jr., Edward. ''The Lincoln Assassination Encyclopedia.'' New York: Harper Perennial, 2010. *Steers, Jr., Edward. ''Lincoln Legends: Myths, Hoaxes, and Confabulations Associated With Our Greatest President.'' Lexington, Ky.: University Press of Kentucky, 2007. *Steers, Jr. Edward and Holzer, Harold. ''The Lincoln Assassination Conspirators: Their Confinement and Execution, as Recorded in the Letterbook of John Frederick Hartranft.'' Baton Rouge, La.: Louisiana State University Press, 2009. *Stern, Philip Van Doren. ''An End to Valor: The Last Days of the Civil War.'' Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1958. *"Surratt, Mary." In ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica.'' Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica, 1998. *"Surratt, Mary E. Jenkins (1823–1865)." In ''Women in the American Civil War.'' Lisa Tendrich Frank, ed. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2008. *"Surratt, Mary Eugenia Jenkins (1817–1865)." In ''Historical Dictionary of Reconstruction.'' Hans Louis Trefousse, ed. New York: Greenwood Press, 1991. *Swanson, James L. ''Manhunt: The Twelve Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer''. New York: HarperCollins, 2007. *Swanson, James L. and Weinberg, Daniel R. ''Lincoln's Assassins: Their Trial and Execution.'' New York: Harper Perennial, 2008. *Townsend, George Alfred. ''The Life, Crime and Capture of John Wilkes Booth''. New York: Dick and Fitzgerald, Publishers, 1886. *Townsend, George Alfred. ''Washington, Outside and Inside: A Picture and a Narrative of the Origin, Growth, Excellencies, Abuses, Beauties, and Personages of Our Governing City.'' Hartford, Conn.: S.M. Betts & Co., 1874. *Trindal, Elizabeth Steger. ''Mary Surratt: An American Tragedy''. Pelican Pub. Co., 1996. *Turner, Thomas Reed. ''Beware the People Weeping: Public Opinion and the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1982. *Van Doren, Charles Lincoln and McHenry, Robert. ''Webster's American Biographies.'' Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1984. *Verge, Laurie
"Mary Elizabeth Surratt"
In ''The Trial: The Assassination of President Lincoln and the Trial of the Conspirators.'' Lexington, Ky.: University Press of Kentucky, 2003. *Watts, R.A. "Trial and Execution of the Lincoln Conspirators." ''Michigan History Magazine.'' 6:1 (1922). *Weichmann, Louis J. and Richards, A.C. ''A True History of the Assassination of Abraham Lincoln and of the Conspiracy of 1865.'' New York: Knopf, 1975. *Zanca, Kenneth J.. ''The Catholics and Mrs. Mary Surratt: How They Responded to the Trial and Execution of the Lincoln Conspirator''. University Press of America, 2008.


External links

*

daughter
Surratt Society and MuseumRead through the Lincoln Assassination Papers
about evidence against Mary Surratt
Historic Marker at the Surratt Boarding House
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Surratt, Mary 1820s births 1865 deaths 19th-century American women 19th-century executions by the United States 19th-century executions of American people Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Washington, D.C.) Converts to Roman Catholicism Executed American women Executed people from Maryland Lincoln assassination conspirators People executed by the United States federal government by hanging People from Clinton, Maryland People of Maryland in the American Civil War Women in the American Civil War Catholics from Maryland American women slave owners