Existing comment:
Mary Surratt:
At her conspiracy trial and beyond, strenuous efforts were made to prevent Mrs. Surratt from becoming the first woman in America to be executed by the Federal government. In fact, a majority of the military tribunal that convicted her also requested that her life by spared -- a recommendation rejected by Andrew Johnson.
According to Johnson, far from the simple pious widow portrayed by her defenders, Mrs. Surratt "kept the nest that hatched the rotten egg." Her boarding house on Washington's H Street served as a meeting place for Booth and his fellow conspirators. The proprietress herself carried incriminating messages for Booth, including a request to have some weapons ready for him to pick up at the Surrattsville (now Clinton, Maryland) tavern the night of the assassination. Her son, John, was regarded by many as a major figure in the plot. |