John Wilkes Booth Biography

John Wilkes Booth was a well-known actor who shot to the heights of notoriety by assassinating the President Abraham Lincoln in Washington, D.C. He was a fanatic supporter of the Confederates and was bitterly opposed to Lincoln. The assassination of Lincoln was a part of a grand conspiracy he had hatched with a group of co-conspirators—a well-planned plot had been hatched for killing the President Lincoln, Vice President Andrew Johnson, and Secretary of State William H. Seward. Only Booth’s attempt was successful. A strikingly handsome man, Booth was a well-known stage actor who hailed from the famous 19th century Booth theatrical family. As a young boy he was athletic and popular though he did not like school. He developed an interest in theatre and made his stage debut when he was 17. With his good looks and talent he became a very popular actor. However, there was another side to his charming actor’s persona — he had a deep rooted hatred for President Lincoln and his policies. After an initial plan of kidnapping the President was foiled, an embittered Booth decided to assassinate the president. He carried out his plan by shooting the President when Lincoln was watching the play ‘Our American Cousin’ at Ford's Theatre. He evaded immediate capture though he was shot dead a few days later.