The Trial: The Assassination of President Lincoln and the Trial of the Conspirators

by Edward Steers Jr. (Editor)

Overview

" With commentary by Terry Alford, Burrus Carnahan, Joan L. Chaconis, Percy Martin, Betty Ownsbey, Edward Steers Jr., Thomas R. Turner, and Laurie Verge On April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln. By April 26, eight of the ten people eventually charged as accomplices in Lincoln's murder were in custody. Booth was killed resisting capture and John Surratt was in Canada, his whereabouts unknown to Federal authorities. In the days that followed, President Johnson is

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813122779
Publisher:	University Press of Kentucky
Publication date:	07/31/2003
Pages:	552
Sales rank:	502,020
Product dimensions:	6.13(w) x 9.25(h) x (d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Edward Steers Jr. is the author of several books about President Lincoln and his assassination, including Lincoln: A Pictorial History, His Name is Still Mudd: The Case Against Doctor Samuel Alexander Mudd, and Blood on the Moon: The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln.

Table of Contents

Preface
Introduction
The Military Trial
General Conspiracy
Testimony Relating to John Wilkes Booth, and Circumstances Attending the Assassination
Edman Spangler
Mary Elizabeth Surratt
John H. Surratt Jr.
George Atzerodt
Lewis Thornton Powell, alias Lewis Payne
Samuel Alexander Mudd
Samuel Arnold and Michael O'Laughlen
General Order Number 100
Military Commission Exhibits in the case of U.S. vs. D.E. Herold, et al.
"Lost Confession" of George A. Atzerodt
Title Page to Original Edition
Contents to Original Edition

Editorial Reviews

Edward Steers Jr., an accomplished historian who has written informative books on Lincoln's assassination, offers a fairly light hearted- but fully documented- look at some of the legends and myths that have bedeviled our understanding of the 16th president and his times.

Bowling Green Daily News

"Under the guidance of the experts—Steers's line-up is truly expert—readers will be able to distinguish between fact and fancy and come away with a far better understanding of Lincoln's assassination. Everyone with a general or scholarly interest in the assassination and the war will want to have this book."—William Hanchett, author of The Lincoln Murder Conspiracies

From the Publisher

A first rate book that gives all of the details about Lincoln's assassination and the conspirators' trial.

The Lone Star Book Review

The Trial is an invaluable resource and a world-altering reading experience.

San Francisco Book Review

An invaluable reference work and a book that anyone with a serious interest in the Lincoln conspiracy ought to own.

Journal of Southern History

Steers has edited an important book in Pitman's trial documents, making it generally available to modern readers.

Civil War Book Review

"The Trial's major strength is that it has been assembled by Edward Steers Jr., unquestionably the world-class expert on Abraham Lincoln's assassination. He has enlisted first-class assistance from other experts, each of whom provides lucid and thoughtful input."

Civil War News

Qualifies as the single most important volume on the Lincoln assassination.

Joseph Edward Garrera

The Lincoln scholar, and even those with a less consuming interest in the murder of the Savior of the Union, will find this book fascinating.

Signal Flag

Beginning with essays by Steers and other Lincoln scholars about Booth and the eight people arrested as part of the conspiracy, most of the book consists of testimony and legal arguments from the trial transcript. Far from a slipshod investigation, the case looks pretty strong against those accused, with witness testifying to their various meetings before the assassination. Fascinating stuff for history buffs. — The Hancock News

Hancock News

Reading about something is one thing, but reading the actual testimony - for instance, a witness's play-by-play of John Wilkes Booth's final moments - made the event real in a way I'd never experienced before. I had no idea that Ulysses S. Grant and General Hamilton (Alexander Hamilton's grandson) were among those who testified, or that so much energy was invested in tying the conspirators to ongoing intrigues wiht the Confederate Secret Service. In addition, the actual protocols and arguments are fascinating, taking you through the nuts and bolts of trying a case of such magnitude. The Trial is an invaluable resource and a world-altering reading experience. — San Francisco Book Review

San Francisco Book Review - Glen Dallas

Brings together a special edition of the trial transcript and ninety pages of commentaries by modern authorities on testimony deemed important to both the prosecution and the defense.

Journal of Illinois History

Steers is meticulous but never boring, and readers will be fascinated by the variety of tales told about Lincoln's life and death.

Indiana Magazine of History

A valuable work.... Even casual perusers will find passages that tell them something interesting about some of the Confederacy's more sinister schemes, as well as the political atmosphere of immediate postbellum America.

Books and Culture

Succeeds in gathering under one cover the essential and unvarnished details of that tragic and twisted affair, including the shadowy presence of the Confederate Secret Service.

The Washington Times

Now readers have easy access to a vital original source document.

William Hanchett