| 7:30 Tuesday Evening, April 14. . . . | ||||
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On the Trail of
John Wilkes Booth presented by Judge Alan Norris |
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Judge Alan Norris will address the Big Walnut area Historical
Society at 7:3-0, Tuesday evening, April 14. His topic is "On the
Trail of John Wilkes Booth" who shot President Lincoln just 150
years ago. The talk will be in the Myers Inn Museum Meeting Room at
45 S. Columbus Street in Sunbury. Admission is free. Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse on April 9, 1865, effectively ending meaningful Confederate resistance. John Wilkes Booth, a member of America's premier theatrical acting family, had long harbored strong Confederate sympathies. He had traveled to Canada in the fall of 1864 to conspire with Confederate agents there to kidnap President Abraham Lincoln and carry him to Richmond, Va., the capitol of the Confederacy. Booth imagined that the Rebel government could extract concessions from Union officials in order to ransom Lincoln. But as the war quickly turned against the Southern cause, John Wilkes Booth turned his attention to murdering Lincoln. On the evening of April 14, 1865 as President and Mrs. Lincoln were enjoying a production of the comedy, "Our American Cousin", Booth shot Lincoln at point blank range. The President died around 7 a.m. next morning, the first U.S. President to have been assassinated. "On the Trail of John Wilkes Booth" will trace Booth's attempt to escape through Southern Maryland and Northern Virginia. John Wilkes Booth was apprehended and killed by Union cavalry troopers after an extensive manhunt. Judge Norris and his wife, Carol, have traveled extensively through rural Maryland and Virginia, visiting the sites that are still in existence along Booth's escape route. The talk will include a PowerPoint presentation of the photography from their trips. The presentation will follow a brief business meeting at which members will vote on proposed changes to the By-Laws. Tickets for the Candlelight Dinner will be available at the meeting. The dinner will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 18 in the Myers inn Museum. Cost is $30 per person. Tickets may also be purchased by calling Alice at 740-965-1942. Myers Inn Museum is open 12-3 on Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays as well as 10-3 on Saturdays. For private tours for your group or club, call Polly 740-965-3582. Myers Inn Museum faces the southwest corner of Sunbury Village Square. |
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(03/20/2015) |
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