- Joined
- Oct 10, 2012
- Location
- Mt. Jackson, Va
During the trial of the Lincoln assassination conspirators, the prosecution attempted to link Ned Spangler to the assassination. Spangler, a stagehand at Ford’s Theatre, was friends with Booth, and the prosecution believed he had aided the assassin. To prove Spangler’s role, prosecutors argued that he had drilled a hole in the door leading to the theater box. They then argued that Booth had used this hole to spy on Lincoln and his party. However, they provided no conclusive evidence to prove their argument.
In 1940, John T. Ford’s grandson gave the door, which had been saved following the gutting of the theatre, to the Lincoln Museum, now Ford’s Theatre NHS. Examining this door closely, one will notice a small hole above the doorknob. Historians have debated who drilled this hole with Spangler and Booth being the prime suspects. In 1962, Harry Ford’s son, Frank Ford, refuted this claim, writing in a letter that:
“The hole was bored by my father, Harry Clay Ford, or rather on his orders, and was bored for the simple reason it would allow the guard, one Parker easy opportunity whenever he so desired to look into the box rather than open the inner door to check on the presidential party.”
Regardless of who drilled it, Booth seems to have used the hole to observe Lincoln’s position before entering the box.
#FordsTheatreNPS #AbrahamLincoln #MuseumMonday
In 1940, John T. Ford’s grandson gave the door, which had been saved following the gutting of the theatre, to the Lincoln Museum, now Ford’s Theatre NHS. Examining this door closely, one will notice a small hole above the doorknob. Historians have debated who drilled this hole with Spangler and Booth being the prime suspects. In 1962, Harry Ford’s son, Frank Ford, refuted this claim, writing in a letter that:
“The hole was bored by my father, Harry Clay Ford, or rather on his orders, and was bored for the simple reason it would allow the guard, one Parker easy opportunity whenever he so desired to look into the box rather than open the inner door to check on the presidential party.”
Regardless of who drilled it, Booth seems to have used the hole to observe Lincoln’s position before entering the box.
#FordsTheatreNPS #AbrahamLincoln #MuseumMonday
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