Lincoln almost didn't go. General Grant and his wife had declined the invitation; the First Lady had offended Mrs. Grant. Other guests were sought and refused. Finally, Clara Harris and her fiancé Major Henry Rathbone agreed to accompany the Lincolns. The play was 'Our American Cousin,' a popular comedy. Lincoln's party arrived late, during the first act. The orchestra played 'Hail to the Chief.' The audience applauded. Lincoln took his seat in the flag-draped box. Meanwhile, John Wilkes Booth - famous actor, Confederate sympathizer, failed kidnapping conspirator - was across the street at a tavern, drinking whiskey and waiting for his moment.

John Wilkes Booth was 26, handsome, and successful - a matinee idol from a famous theatrical family. He was also a passionate Confederate who had spent years plotting against Lincoln. An earlier kidnapping scheme had fallen apart. Now, with the Confederacy collapsing, Booth chose murder. He knew Ford's Theatre intimately, knew its layout, knew when the single laugh line in Act III, Scene 2 would cover any noise. At approximately 10:15 PM, he entered the unguarded presidential box, placed his derringer inches from Lincoln's skull, and fired. When Major Rathbone lunged at him, Booth slashed him with a knife, then leaped twelve feet to the stage, breaking his leg on landing but still managing to escape on horseback.

Lincoln was carried across the street to the Petersen House, a boarding house where a young soldier rented a room. The President was laid diagonally across a bed too short for his tall frame. Doctors arrived, but the wound was obviously fatal - the bullet had entered behind his left ear and lodged behind his right eye. Throughout the night, government officials, family members, and friends filed in and out of the cramped bedroom. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton conducted the investigation from the back parlor. Mary Lincoln wept in the front parlor. At 7:22 AM on April 15, Abraham Lincoln died. Stanton allegedly said, 'Now he belongs to the ages' - though the exact words are disputed.

Booth escaped Washington on horseback, met up with accomplice David Herold, and headed south through Maryland. His broken leg was set by Dr. Samuel Mudd - whose name became synonymous with trouble. For twelve days, the assassin evaded the largest manhunt in American history. On April 26, Union cavalry cornered Booth and Herold in a tobacco barn near Port Royal, Virginia. Herold surrendered; Booth refused. The soldiers set the barn on fire. As Booth appeared in the doorway, Sergeant Boston Corbett shot him through the neck. Booth died on the porch of the farmhouse, reportedly asking someone to lift his hands so he could see them and murmuring, 'Useless, useless.' Eight alleged conspirators were tried; four were hanged.

Ford's Theatre is located on 10th Street NW in downtown Washington, D.C. The building operates as both a working theater and a National Historic Site. The museum in the basement traces Lincoln's presidency and assassination through artifacts including the derringer Booth used. The presidential box is preserved but not accessible; visitors view it from the balcony. The Petersen House across the street, where Lincoln died, displays the room where he spent his final hours. Timed entry tickets are required and available free from the National Park Service, though the theater is closed during performances and rehearsals. The site is a short walk from the Metro Center station. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is 5 miles south. Ford's Theatre is one of Washington's most visited sites; plan to spend at least two hours.