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Ford's Theatre, Washington, D.C. © Abraham Lincoln Online

Lincoln Assassination-Related Places To better understand the Lincoln assassination and its immediate aftermath, nothing equals visiting the places associated with it. This list shows historic sites and museums which are open to the public. For more information, click on the links shown and see the Assassination Links page. For additional museums and libraries with assassination collections, click here.

CONNECTICUT

Hartford -- The Connecticut Historical Society owns the Treasury Guard flag Lincoln clutched when he was shot. It is one of two Treasury flags which decorated the presidential box; the other is displayed at the Ford's Theatre museum.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

Ford's Theatre -- On April 14, 1865 President Lincoln was assassinated by John Wilkes Booth while attending a play in this restored building. The theatre's museum features many important items, including the murder weapon.

Fort McNair -- Assassination conspirators were tried, executed and buried on the grounds of this working army base at the southern tip of the District. The building which housed the trial still stands but is not open for tours. Public access to the fort is very limited.

Library of Congress -- This venerable institution has more than just rare Lincoln documents -- it also owns items such as the contents of Lincoln's pockets from the night he was assassinated.

National Museum of American History -- The presidential exhibit in this Smithsonian Institution building displays famous relics such as the hat Lincoln wore to the theatre on April 14, 1865.

Navy Yard -- In 1865 the autopsy of assassin John Wilkes Booth was conducted on board the Montauk, an ironclad vessel docked here. The Montauk is gone, but the Navy Museum is open to the public.

Petersen House -- After Lincoln was shot at Ford's Theatre, he was carried across the street to this boarding house where he died the next morning. This restored building is open to the public.

Surratt Boarding House -- Mary Surratt, one of the condemed conspirators, owned this building at 604 H Street where the assassination conspirators met. Now a Chinatown restaurant, both the interior and exterior have been considerably altered.

United States Capitol Building -- Lincoln was the first president to lie in state in the famous Rotunda. The catafalque which supported his coffin used to be stored two floors below in a special chamber but now has its own display area in the Capitol visitors center.

White House -- After Lincoln's death, his body was brought here for the autopsy. The public was allowed to view his remains in the East Room; the next day an invitation-only funeral took place in the East Room, with the message given by his Washington pastor, Dr. Gurley.

ILLINOIS

Chicago -- The Chicago History Museum maintains important assassination artifacts, such as the original Lincoln deathbed and a blood-stained cape worn by his wife.

Springfield -- One of the most poignant sites of all is the Lincoln Tomb where the president and four of his family members are buried. It's located in Oak Ridge Cemetery on the north side of his old hometown.

MARYLAND

Beantown -- Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth, who broke his leg after shooting Lincoln, stopped at the Samuel Mudd House for medical treatment. The restored farmhouse is open to the public part of the year.

Clinton -- The Surratt Society operates the restored country home of Mary Surratt, who was executed as a conspirator in 1865. The house is one of the stops on the popular John Wilkes Booth Escape Route Tour, which covers the territory Lincoln's assassin traveled after the shooting.

Silver Spring -- The National Museum of Health and Medicine has moved to different quarters and contains a unique assassination artifact: the bullet which killed Lincoln.

MICHIGAN

Dearborn -- One of the most famous furniture items in the Henry Ford Museum is the rocking chair Lincoln sat in when he was shot. The restored chair still shows blood stains from Lincoln's wound.

PENNSYLVANIA

Milford -- The Pike County Historical Society possesses yet another flag from Lincoln's theatre box: the one believed to have cushioned his head before he was moved to the Petersen House where he died.

TENNESSEE

Harrogate -- The Abraham Lincoln Museum at Lincoln Memorial University owns the silver-headed cane President Lincoln carried into Ford's Theatre on April 14 and other assassination-related objects and ephemera.

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