History has a tendency to be biased. Always told from the apparent side of the ‘good’. From the British being the bad guys in the Revolutionary War, to the idea, that terrorism raised because of the War in Iraq, the media, as well as other sources, tends to be biased towards the side that we, as humans, are more likely to be able to relate with. However, the untold side of the story is always the one with more facts, and it is the one that is truly the key to figure out motive. The book, Chasing Lincoln’s Killer, written by James Swanson is one, such text that reports how the man who assassinated Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth, created his plan and the manhunt that followed. What may seem like a heinous crime to us was a glorious crime …show more content…
A little know fact: Lincoln did not die until the next morning, thanks to the immediate response of a doctor nearby. Dr. Charles Leale, a U.S Army surgeon went up into the President’s box, and attempted to revive Lincoln, while the rest of the crowd in the theatre became an unruly mob. Thanks to Dr. Leale’s quick thinking, Lincoln was saved from immediate death. “Quick action had saved the president from immediate death, on the floor of Ford’s Theatre,”(Swanson 69). Dr. Leale has been forever forgotten, and he provided Martha Lincoln as well as other close friends of Lincoln a final chance to see their hero, before he passed away. The history books ought to cover him too. The other unknown heroes of that terrible night were the family and servants at the Seward’s house. Little do people know, that Secretary of State WIlliam H. Seward was also attacked that night, by an accomplice of Booth. However, the quick thinking, skilled fighting, and good luck managed to prevent Powell(the accomplish), from assassinating another member of the white house staff. “Robinson ignored the wounds and kept fighting.”( Swanson 57). Each action taken that night by so many made a big difference, and it saved the lives of some, and alerted the nation of the next threat it was to face. So many facts of that night have since been forgotten… this book provides readers with a chance to discover the real facts of …show more content…
Throughout Booth’s manhunt, the reader encounters many different Confederate supporters, and they discover how many people were actually loyal. As the book reads on pg. 23, “...Booth came into contact with sympathetic secret agents in Canada, New York City, Washington, D.C, Maryland, and Virginia.” Across the United States, so many people felt sympathetic towards the Confederates. It is a common misconception that the North and South were quite split on slavery, and that almost all of the North wanted slavery abolished while the South didn’t. Through reading this book, I, as well as anyone else who reads it, will discover the truth on how split the country was, and how major of a political and moral divide the issue of slavery was. In addition to the unknown support, another interesting fact not very well known, until this book is read, is the greater plot that was meant to happen. Booth had not only planned to assassinate the president, but through co-conspirators, he also planned to assassinate the vice president(Andrew Johnson), as well as Secretary of State Seward. Luckily, none of the other attacks were able to follow through, which were to be made happen by Lewis Powell, George Atzerodt, and David Herold. However, because their plot failed, not many people know of the attack. “This news seemed to prove to Booth the faithful Powell had carried out his mission.” (Swanson 75). Just like
Brandon Smith Mr.Dittmar 12/14/2014 American History Book Report #2 “Killing Lincoln” Killing Lincoln is a very good easy to read historical book. I already knew some about when Lincoln was shot and how he died but this book put in so much more little details that any other thing I have gotten information from. I feel like Bill O'Rreilly did a very good job writing this book. I really like the way that it was wrote using the time and different days for the chapters. That helped give the book some detail and helped me understand what was going on in the book and when important scenes were easier to understand.
The book that I decided to read for my quarter book report was Manhunt, The 12 Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer by James L. Swanson. I chose this book because I thought it would be interesting to learn about how they actually tracked down Abraham Lincoln’s killer after he was assassinated. Manhunt went into a lot of detail about how Lincoln’s killer, John Wilkes Booth, was found. The story started off on the morning of March 4th, 1865, which was the morning of Abraham Lincoln’s second inauguration.
Strong, devoted, and dedicated conspirators are one of the main things you need in an assassination plan. Booth struggled to have every member to be loyal, and trustworthy. Even though Booth had some strong accomplices like David Herold and Lewis Powell, although his gang all together was a weakness in his plan. “David Herold, an experienced outdoorsman hunter, and tracker, would accompany Lewis Powell, take him to Seward’s home, and guide the assassin, unfamiliar with the capital’s streets, out of the city where he would meet up with Booth.”
No matter how many news reports and newspapers people scour through, there is always a better chance than not that key information is missed because of a biased article writer. Through reading the book, Chasing Lincoln’s Killer, no side is left out, and while Swanson is a writer from the North, he manages to cover the entire story of Booth’s manhunt, including the many hidden facts as well as the motive behind Booth’s attack. Through primary sources and other documents, the text is quite informative, and therefore is a must read for anyone and everyone. It does matter if people read this book, because it reveals so much more than what most people know, about this horrific incident. Every day, manhunts and assassinations take place around the
Miss.Dean Page1 Chloe. Freniere 7th grade ela 3/24.23 Chasing Lincoln’s Killer Chasing Lincoln's Killer is a novel authorized by James L. Swanson. This book was published in February 2009. Chasing LIncoln's killer is about a man named John Wilkes Booth who killed the president of the United States of America. He killed him because he held that belief, and it was the motive behind his plot to murder Abraham LIncoln.
Although it was very common for inns to kill and rob their guests, but there were many people who would’ve had motive to kill Lewis. He had made enemies because of his important placement in office, some of these enemies included James Wilkinson. The Lewis and Wilkinson rivalry was known to be bitter. Lewis had rejected Wilkinsons invitation to establish western territories. Jefferson had chosen Lewis over Wilkinson many times without Wilkinsons consent.
Late on a April night in 1865, the unthinkable became true. America’s president had been assassinated. In 1865, a lot changed for Americans who were in love with their president after president Lincoln was shot. There are many conspiracy theories questioning who was involved, for what reasons, and the bigger reason the assassination was planed. The fate of those responsible will also be examined.
Lincoln had many people that tried to assassinate him. There was only one that succeeded in killing Lincoln. He was careful with his methods and process. John Wilkes Booth was the man that killed Abraham Lincoln at Ford 's Theater. Nine months before Lincoln was assassinated someone else tried to kill Lincoln in August of 1864.
Secretary Seward was supposed to be assassinated by Lewis Powell and David Herold, while George Atzerodt was supposed to kill Vice President Andrew
Five days after the Confederacy’s surrender, John Wilkes Booth had successfully killed one of the most influential presidents in American history to do what he believed would redeem power to the southern states. Booth’s main goal was to tear down the Union’s government by taking down their leader and his successors, but the original plan did not involve the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Historian Christopher Hammer explained in his article "Booth's Reason for Assassination", the former actor had created a group of co conspirators and designed "a ploy on March 17 to capture Lincoln as he traveled in his carriage [and had] collapsed when the president changed his itinerary—and several of Booth’s conspirators ultimately left the group.” (Teaching History). Since the failed capture of the president, Booth hatred towards Lincoln grew after hearing the president’s goal to officially abolish slavery in his Second Presidential
“John” notes that Booth’s family was a renowned acting dynasty at the time of the Civil War. Booth himself was an ardent supporter of slavery with a burning hatred for Abraham Lincoln (Britannica.com). “Assassination,” suggests that Booth’s hatred of Lincoln may have been caused in part Lincoln’s undemocratic practices. The President deemed censorship of speeches and newspapers necessary during the Civil War. Additionally, the President was able to suspend any writ of habeas corpus, which prevented trials from taking place (2009).
James L. Swanson Chasing Lincoln’s Killer 2009 Chasing Lincoln’s Killer is a book about the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, a past United States of America president. The introduction of the book is how John Wilkes Booth, Lincoln’s killer, and his accomplices, made a plan to kidnap the American president, but their plan failed. So, John Wilkes Booth and his little gang decide to kill the President, the Vice President, and the Secretary of State in one night. John Wilkes Booth would kill the president at Ford’s theater, His accomplice George Atzerodt would kill the Vice President at the Vice President’s hotel room. Lewis Powell and David Herold would kill the Secretary of State.
Before the plan to kill president Lincoln came about, there was another plot to kidnap him. George Atzerodt was one of the original men involved in the plot to kidnap Lincoln, yet this plan fell through and never took place or succeeded. On the night of April fifteenth eighteen sixty five, he was given the job of murdering vice president Andrew Johnson. Out of Booth, Powell, and Atzerodt, Atzerodt was given the
The Rock once said, "Success isn't always about greatness. It's about consistency. Consistent hard work leads to success. Greatness will come." John Wilkes booth didn't understand this.
so at 8:30 that night president Lincoln 's carriage pulled up. sources say that Lincoln showed up with no bodyguards or any of his staff. a fellow employee of Booth held the reins while booth went inside. at 10:00 pm Booth knew that Harry Hawk would be on stage by himself. So once he went on stage alone Booth opened the door and went into the president 's box and once the crowd burst into laughter,he pulled the trigger and shot President Lincoln the the back of the head.