To honor the anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln, the township library hosted tour guide and reenactor Michael Jesberger on April 30.
Jesberger offers 45 lectures on various aspects of the Revolutionary, Civil and World War eras. Though the anniversary of Lincoln’s shooting was April 14 – he died the next day – Jesberger’s talk was held on the last day of the month due to scheduling.
He began by addressing major historical events that took place over the years in April, from the Battle of Lexington and Concord to the sinking of the Titanic. He then transitioned to the Civil War and the Lincoln assassination plot.
“In my opinion, it’s absolutely tragic that this president who got us through those four (war) years is given the news that Robert E. Lee surrendered to Ulysses S. Grant on April 9 … And then he’s killed. He has no time to enjoy it,” Jesberger noted.
He then went on to talk about how Lincoln was not the only target for assassination. Accused killer John Wilkes Booth did not work alone, and it is believed he and others planned to murder leading members of the federal government, including Grant; Vice President Andrew Johnson; and Secretary of State William Seward, who was seriously injured.
Jesberger used informational slides and images of surviving era artifacts throughout his talk, including clothing.
“Everything survives,” he maintained. “The flag, the (president’s) shirt collar, her (Mary Lincoln’s) dress …”
His images also included one of the 44-caliber pistol Booth used in the assassination, and Jesberger described how the assassin crept through a door at Ford’s Theater in Washington, D.C., locked the entrance to the president’s private box and timed the shot into Lincoln’s head when he knew – as an actor – the audience would be laughing.
Booth then escaped by jumping from the balcony and onto the stage, breaking his leg.
“He goes over the balcony,” Jesberger recounted, “but when he does that, he catches his spur in this brand new decoration that was there that night. He catches his spur in the bunting, and it throws him off balance.”
Jesberger also talked about Lincoln’s last hours in a bed that was too small for his lanky frame at a home near the theater, because he couldn’t be brought back to the White House fast enough. Lincoln’s wife, Mary Todd, was asked at one point to leave the room because of her emotional outbursts. Lincoln’s younger son Tad, saw a different play that night and was not initially aware of the tragedy.
Jesberger also described Booth’s escape and his April 26 killing, when a New York cavalry soldier went against direct orders, shooting and killing Booth when he saw the assassin hiding in a burning barn in Virginia.
“Sgt. Boston Corbett, was present,” Jesberger explained, “and he believed that he was an instrument of Jesus Christ. He was on this planet to do God’s bidding. So he ignores the orders.”
As he neared the end of his talk, Jesberger acknowledged he didn’t have time to go over the entire episode of Booth’s killling and the trial of his co-conspirators. He looked to librarian Katherine Grady as he mentioned his enthusiasm for a possible part two of the discussion.
“We’re so glad to have history programming that appeals to so many of our patrons,” Grady said. “Michael was so animated and interesting. I’m sure we’ll bring him back.”
