The Lincoln Assassination Conspirators:
For decades, it remained one of the many mysteries surrounding the Lincoln assassination conspiracy: What had happened to the detailed letterbook kept by Maj. Gen. (Bvt.) John F. Hartranft, the military governor of the prison at the Washington Arsenal where the eight conspirators were confined? Hartranft, who had headed a brigade at the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg and the Crater, was known to have kept meticulous handwritten records of everything that happened at the prison during the conspiracy trial — up to and including the execution of four conspirators in the prison courtyard. Yet these records disappeared and were presumed lost. The mystery was finally solved in the 1960s when they were donated to Gettysburg College by one of the general’s grandsons. The documents did not come to the attention of scholars until 1983 and, even then, they were underappreciated and underutilized. This book by popular Lincoln authors Edward Steers Jr. and Harold Holzer is an attempt to make these records accessible to a wider audience. This is a worthwhile project because it provides fresh detail and new perspective on the conspirators’ confinement. Much has been made, for example, of the harsh treatment of the prisoners, six of whom were hooded and shackled even when being held in their cells. Hartranft’s letterbook, however, suggests that the general went out of his way to ensure humane treatment for his prisoners. From the beginning, he complained to his superior that the hooding and shackling was unnecessary — and eventually both were removed. The book is organized in three sections. The first, about 60 pages, provides background on Hartranft’s life and is a succinct summary of the Lincoln assassination conspiracy, the flight of the conspirators, their capture, the conspiracy trial and the execution of the accused. Between sections one and two is a comprehensive collection of relevant photographs, drawings and charts. The second section, about 100 pages, reproduces Hartranft’s letterbook from the time of his appointment in May 1865 until the executions. The third section provides photographs of representative pages from the letterbook, showing the original handwriting. The editors’ summary and related photographs are what are important to the general readers. Steers and Holzer do a creditable job of boiling down the conspiracy and trial to its salient points. I especially appreciated the cogent summary of the attorney general’s decision for a military as opposed to a civil trial for the accused (an issue that is relevant today as the government struggles with how to deal with suspected terrorists). The reproduction of letterbook text is probably of greater interest to specialists and scholars. The bulk of it deals with pedestrian details, such as meals served, cell inspections made, medical inspection conducted and the like. This book doesn’t have any dramatic new revelations, but it is a good, solid addition to the Lincoln assassination story. Reviewer: Walt Albro is a magazine writer and editor who lives in Rockville, Md.
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Illustrated, appendix, index, 170 pp., 2009. Louisiana State University Press, 3990 W. Lakeshore Dr., Baton Rouge, LA, www.lsu.edu/Isupress, $24.95 plus shipping.