{
  "title": "The Night the Curtain Fell on Abraham Lincoln",
  "dek": "How the tragic assassination of the 16th President at Ford's Theatre triggered a nationwide manhunt and a historic military tribunal.",
  "slug": "assassination-of-abraham-lincoln-solved",
  "canonical_url": "https://crimesandmyths.com/case/assassination-of-abraham-lincoln-solved",
  "published_at": "2026-10-05T14:06:45.628Z",
  "updated_date": "2026-10-19T14:51:10.066000",
  "word_count": 860,
  "direct_answer": "On April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C. The case was resolved through a massive federal investigation and manhunt, leading to the death of Booth on April 26, 1865, and the subsequent conviction and execution of his fellow conspirators by a military tribunal.",
  "key_facts": [
    {
      "label": "Incident Date",
      "value": "April 14, 1865"
    },
    {
      "label": "Location",
      "value": "Ford's Theatre, Washington, D.C."
    },
    {
      "label": "Primary Assailant",
      "value": "John Wilkes Booth"
    },
    {
      "label": "Method",
      "value": "Single gunshot wound to the head"
    },
    {
      "label": "Legal Outcome",
      "value": "Four conspirators executed by hanging"
    },
    {
      "label": "Status",
      "value": "Closed historical case"
    }
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "question": "Who was the first doctor to treat Abraham Lincoln after he was shot?",
      "answer": "Dr. Charles Leale was the first physician to attend to the President at Ford's Theatre."
    },
    {
      "question": "What happened to the conspirators after the assassination?",
      "answer": "Following a military tribunal, four of the primary conspirators were executed by hanging on July 7, 1865."
    },
    {
      "question": "Where was John Wilkes Booth killed?",
      "answer": "John Wilkes Booth was killed at the Garrett farm in Virginia on April 26, 1865, during a standoff with the New York Cavalry."
    }
  ],
  "structured_block": {
    "timeline": [
      {
        "date": "March 20, 1865",
        "event": "Failed kidnapping plot against Abraham Lincoln."
      },
      {
        "date": "April 14, 1865",
        "event": "Assassination of Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre."
      },
      {
        "date": "April 15, 1865",
        "event": "Death of Abraham Lincoln at 7:22 a.m."
      },
      {
        "date": "April 26, 1865",
        "event": "Death of John Wilkes Booth at Garrett farm."
      },
      {
        "date": "July 7, 1865",
        "event": "Execution of the Lincoln conspirators."
      }
    ],
    "persons": [
      "Abraham Lincoln",
      "John Wilkes Booth",
      "Charles Leale",
      "Samuel A. Mudd",
      "George Atzerodt",
      "Andrew Johnson",
      "Mary Todd Lincoln"
    ],
    "evidence_status": "Court-established through military tribunal and official government reports.",
    "current_status": "Closed historical event.",
    "sources": [
      {
        "title": "The Lincoln Conspirators",
        "url": "https://nps.gov/foth/learn/historyculture/the-lincoln-conspirators.htm",
        "publisher": "National Park Service",
        "tier": "primary"
      },
      {
        "title": "Abraham Lincoln Assassination",
        "url": "https://history.com/articles/abraham-lincoln-assassination",
        "publisher": "History.com",
        "tier": "tertiary"
      },
      {
        "title": "Doctors Report on Lincoln Assassination",
        "url": "https://nbcnews.com/news/world/doctors-report-lincoln-assassination-discovered-researcher-flna816229",
        "publisher": "NBC News",
        "tier": "secondary"
      },
      {
        "title": "American Originals: Lincoln",
        "url": "https://archives.gov/exhibits/american_originals/lincoln.html",
        "publisher": "National Archives",
        "tier": "primary"
      }
    ],
    "reviewer": {
      "completeness": 95,
      "narrative_quality": 85,
      "readability": 90,
      "direct_answer_standalone": true,
      "perspective_counterpoints": true,
      "honesty_framing": true,
      "verdict": "pass",
      "reasons": "The article is accurate, readable, and appropriately structured for an entertainment-focused historical summary."
    }
  },
  "entities": [
    {
      "name": "Abraham Lincoln",
      "type": "Person",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abraham_Lincoln",
      "description": "The 16th President of the United States who was assassinated in 1865."
    },
    {
      "name": "John Wilkes Booth",
      "type": "Person",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilkes_Booth",
      "description": "The stage actor and Confederate sympathizer who assassinated Abraham Lincoln."
    },
    {
      "name": "Ford's Theatre",
      "type": "Place",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford%27s_Theatre",
      "description": "The venue in Washington, D.C., where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated."
    },
    {
      "name": "Charles Leale",
      "type": "Person",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Leale",
      "description": "The military surgeon who was the first doctor to treat Lincoln after the shooting."
    },
    {
      "name": "National Archives",
      "type": "Organization",
      "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Archives_and_Records_Administration",
      "description": "The government institution that holds the official records of the Lincoln assassination investigation."
    }
  ],
  "place": {
    "name": "Ford's Theatre",
    "address": "511 10th St NW, Washington, DC 20004",
    "sameAs": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford%27s_Theatre"
  },
  "temporal_coverage": {
    "start": "",
    "end": ""
  },
  "claims": [
    {
      "claim_text": "John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865.",
      "category": "timeline",
      "agreement_status": "court_established",
      "confidence": 1,
      "is_quotable": true,
      "quote_text": "Sic Semper Tyrannis",
      "quote_attribution": "John Wilkes Booth"
    },
    {
      "claim_text": "John Wilkes Booth was killed at the Garrett farm in Virginia on April 26, 1865.",
      "category": "timeline",
      "agreement_status": "established",
      "confidence": 1,
      "is_quotable": false,
      "quote_text": "",
      "quote_attribution": ""
    },
    {
      "claim_text": "Dr. Samuel Mudd treated John Wilkes Booth's broken leg on April 15, 1865.",
      "category": "evidence",
      "agreement_status": "court_established",
      "confidence": 1,
      "is_quotable": false,
      "quote_text": "",
      "quote_attribution": ""
    },
    {
      "claim_text": "Dr. Charles Leale was the first doctor to treat Abraham Lincoln.",
      "category": "person",
      "agreement_status": "established",
      "confidence": 1,
      "is_quotable": true,
      "quote_text": "O doctor, do what you can for him, do what you can!",
      "quote_attribution": "Mary Todd Lincoln"
    },
    {
      "claim_text": "Abraham Lincoln died at 7:22 a.m. on April 15, 1865.",
      "category": "outcome",
      "agreement_status": "reported",
      "confidence": 0.9,
      "is_quotable": true,
      "quote_text": "Useless, useless.",
      "quote_attribution": "John Wilkes Booth"
    },
    {
      "claim_text": "Four of the Lincoln conspirators were sentenced to death by hanging.",
      "category": "outcome",
      "agreement_status": "court_established",
      "confidence": 1,
      "is_quotable": false,
      "quote_text": "",
      "quote_attribution": ""
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "url": "https://nps.gov/foth/learn/historyculture/the-lincoln-conspirators.htm",
      "title": "The Lincoln Conspirators - Ford's Theatre National Historic Site",
      "publisher": "U.S. National Park Service",
      "tier": "primary",
      "type": "court_document"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://history.com/articles/abraham-lincoln-assassination",
      "title": "Abraham Lincoln's Assassination - Timeline, Facts & ...",
      "publisher": "History.com",
      "tier": "tertiary",
      "type": "other"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://nbcnews.com/news/world/doctors-report-lincoln-assassination-discovered-researcher-flna816229",
      "title": "Doctor's report on Lincoln assassination discovered by researcher",
      "publisher": "NBC News",
      "tier": "secondary",
      "type": "news_article"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://archives.gov/exhibits/american_originals/lincoln.html",
      "title": "Exhibit: Lincoln Assassination Report",
      "publisher": "National Archives and Records Administration",
      "tier": "primary",
      "type": "court_document"
    },
    {
      "url": "https://rmc.library.cornell.edu/lincoln/exhibition/assassination/index.html",
      "title": "Last Full Measure of Devotion - Exhibition > Assassination",
      "publisher": "Cornell University Library",
      "tier": "tertiary",
      "type": "other"
    }
  ]
}