Want to come heckle BoothieBarn authors Dave & Kate Taylor in person? Here are some of our public speaking engagements planned for the future.
Date: Saturday, September 21, 2019
Location: Dr. Samuel A. Mudd House (3725 Dr Samuel Mudd Rd, Waldorf, MD 20601)
Time: 1:00 pm
Speech: Dr. Mudd on Trial
Speaker: Dave Taylor
Description: For two months in 1865, Dr. Samuel A. Mudd and seven others sat through a military trial over their involvement in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. What was it like to sit in that court room day after day? How did the press report on the trial of the century? In his talk, Dave will discuss the trial of the conspirators with special attention on the doctor who set the assassin’s leg.
Cost: $7.00 for the talk and a tour of the Dr. Mudd House.
Date: Saturday, September 28, 2019
Location: Surratt House Museum (9118 Brandywine Road, Clinton, MD 20735)
Time: 7:00 am – 7:00 pm
Speech: John Wilkes Booth Escape Route Bus Tour
Speaker: Dave Taylor
Description: Dave is one of the narrators for the Surratt House Museum’s John Wilkes Booth Escape Route Tour. The 12 hour bus tour documents the escape of the assassin through Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Information on how to register can be found here: http://www.surrattmuseum.org/booth-escape-tour
Cost: $85.00
Date: Sunday, October 13, 2019
Location: Tudor Hall (17 Tudor Ln, Bel Air, MD 21015)
Time: 2:00 pm
Speech: “Born Under an Unlucky Star”: The Childhood of John Wilkes Booth
Speaker: Dave Taylor
Description: In this speech, Dave will examine the boyhood of John Wilkes Booth – his familial relationships, his time growing up at Tudor Hall and in Baltimore, and his early education. More information can be found at: http://spiritsoftudorhall.blogspot.com/2016/11/make-plans-to-visit-tudor-hall-in-2017_7.html
Cost: $5.00 cash for the talk and a tour of Tudor Hall
Date: Saturday, April 4, 2020
Location: Colony South Hotel and Conference Center (7401 Surratts Rd, Clinton, MD 20735)
Time: TBD
Speech: The Prisoners of Shark Island: Fort Jefferson and the Lincoln Conspirators
Speaker: Dave Taylor
Description: In his speech, Dave will discuss what prison life was like for Dr. Mudd, Samuel Arnold, Michael O’Laughlen, and Edman Spangler, the four Lincoln assassination conspirators who were sent to the isolated Dry Tortugas for their role in the crime of the century.
Cost: Dave’s speech is one of seven that will be presented during the Surratt Society’s annual Lincoln Assassination Conference. The cost for the whole conference (which includes meals and the day of speeches) is $200.
Date: TBD Saturday(s) in April, 2020
Location: Surratt House Museum (9118 Brandywine Road, Clinton, MD 20735)
Time: 7:00 am – 7:00 pm
Speech: John Wilkes Booth Escape Route Bus Tour
Speaker: Dave Taylor
Description: Dave is one of the narrators for the Surratt House Museum’s John Wilkes Booth Escape Route Tour. The 12 hour bus tour documents the escape of the assassin through Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Information on how to register can be found here: http://www.surrattmuseum.org/booth-escape-tour
Cost: $85
Additional speeches and information will be posted when available. Past speaking engagements can be seen here: https://boothiebarn.com/about/
If you are interested in having either Dave or Kate speak to your group about any aspect of the Lincoln assassination story, click to Contact Us or email to BoothieBarn@gmail.com
Pingback: New Gallery – Baptist Alley « BoothieBarn
Most of your pictures show the alley directly behind the theatre rear wall. The others show the “L” turn to the street. Which one is “Baptist Alley”? Or are both of them considered to be the alley. I Have always been unsure of this. (Incidentally, the bottom right drawing, from Olzweski’s Historic Structures report, shows a staircase behind the adjacent building, which housed the box office and the Ford brothers’ offices.
I’d like to bring up another subject, if I may. I am sorry I don’t recall if you’ve ever written about this, Dave.) Many students of the case believe that this was the second of the three phases of Laura Keene’s route from the stage to the Presidential box after the assassination, in order to avoid most (not all) of the panic-stricken crowd. Actor Robert Gourlay was familiar with the theatre; Laura wasn’t. He took her to the box via this route. (Maybe his name was Thomas; I forget as I write this!) Anyway, phase one of this trip to the box was to cross the stage to a corridor located behind the box, seperating the theatre from this adjoining building. Phase two was to go outside through the door at the end of the corridor (seen in the Historic Structures picture). And phase three was to go inside the adjoining building to the second floor and then enter the theatre through doors on the same level as the Presidential box. Art Loux and I first traversed this route many years ago to see if it was possible — it was. (The staircase is now INSIDE the restored building, rather than being OUTSIDE.) When I gave a talk at Ford’s Theatre about actress Jeannie Gourlay, I showed the audience how this could have been quickly accomplished. I presented a Gourlay descendant to the audience. On my cue, she left the stage by going behind the box. A few moments later she re-appeared at the entrance to the box.
When I was putting the gallery together, Richard, I too was wondering if the term Baptist Alley only applied to one of these streets. That probably was the case with either the alley directly behind Ford’s, parallel to 10th St., or the alleyway that runs perpendicular into Ford’s, parallel to F street, being the true “Baptist Alley”. It is doubtful that the alley that exits out onto F that Booth exited from would have been named Baptist Alley. Nowadays though, we seem to call all of those alleys back there Baptist Alley.
This was a long discussion a while ago, Richard and that was the conclusion. However, was there another door besides the one behind the dress circle that led into the second floor of the southern addition? I think the consensus was it was the only door.
thanks for the post. When I was in DC in 2003 went to Ford’s theater and the theater was closed. Walked to Baptist Alley and talked with the Park District rangers. One of the Rangers let me enter the back door that Booth exited. I got to see the theater from a different perspective. The Ranger said ” you got to see a part of Ford’s theater that 99% of the visitors do not. To this day it was exciting to think I was in the door way that Booth escaped. Thanks again for the pictures.
That’s very cool, Richard. My question to you is, did you take any pictures that you’d be willing to share?
I did not; the only picture is in my memory bank.
Pingback: New Galleries – The Assassination « BoothieBarn
I don’t think there was another door or set of doors behind the Dress Circle that led to the adj. bldg. There certainly isn;t one today. I see no reason why there would have been the need for another one. I think the Interior Dept. got it right when they only reconstructed one set of doors there.
SO EXACTLY WHERE WAS BOOTH’S STABLE, DAVE (AND EVERYONE ELSE)? As you look at the rear wall of the theatre, wasn’t it on the right?. DO we have any photos of it? I have a wire service photo allegedly of the structure that was the stable for the horse, and it appears to be on the right as you look at the theatre’s rear wall.Not sure if that’s accurate, tho.
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