April 26, 1865 - Port Royal, VA: Troops had John Wilkes Booth, President Lincoln’s assassin, surrounded in a burning barn. Government orders said he was to be taken alive.
Sgt. Boston Corbett ignored the command. He fired into the building and mortally wounded Booth who died not long thereafter.
Boston Corbett avenged the President by killing his assassin.
The American public were split over Corbett’s action. Some praised him. Many more wanted Booth alive so he could explain his then-unknown motive. Corbett received no military reprimand despite disobeying orders.
Over time, people discovered that Boston Corbett was something of a lunatic.
He was born Thomas Corbett in London. His parents relocated to New York State in 1840 when he was 8 years old.
Corbett became a milliner - he made hats. The process exposed him to toxic chemicals known for causing psychological disorders.
His wife and child died, sending him into depression. Corbett then moved to Boston, Massachusetts and renamed himself after the city.
1858: Street preachers fascinated him. Corbett was often seen praying with them while pedestrians passed by. Eventually, he also began preaching from street corners and quoting scripture. He devoted himself to God.
One day, the sight of prostitutes aroused him, and Corbett became so ashamed that he went home and castrated himself. Only after supper and a prayer service did he check himself into a hospital for treatment of his self-inflicted castration.
1861: Corbett fought for the Union Army in the Civil War and vowed to kill Confederates. His commanding officers found him to be a religious madman, but they needed soldiers.
Corbett showed courage in battle and was taken captive. Rebels sent him to the infamous Andersonville Prison.
The Confederate POW camp at Andersonville, GA was notorious for mistreatment: a nightmare of mud, excrement, disease, death. Corbett was among the rare souls who survived the awful place. He left in dire health and even worse mental condition.
With nowhere else to go, he made his way back to his Army regiment where he remained for the final few months of the Civil War.
April 15, 1865: John Wilkes Booth shot the President at Ford’s Theater and escaped into the night. After twelve days on the run, he was found at the Virginia farm of Richard Garrett. Boston Corbett claimed God told him to kill Booth.
The famous photographer Matthew Brady took his picture. He was treated as a hero and went on a public speaking tour.
Within a few years, the fickle public forgot about him. His mental health deteriorated even further.
Corbett grew paranoid. He hallucinated that Booth had survived and was out to kill him. He moved to Kansas, became a hermit, and was penniless.
1885: Corbett stood trial for threatening the life of a neighbor. He was sworn in, took the stand, produced two guns, and demanded that everyone leave the courthouse.
1887: The Kansas Legislature, apparently unaware of his deranged courtroom incident, took pity on Lincoln’s Avenger and gave him a job as a statehouse doorman. In a paranoid rage, Corbett waved guns and took control of the legislative proceedings. That got him locked away in an insane asylum.
Within months, Corbett escaped and took a train out of town. No one bothered to track him down. No legitimate sightings were ever recorded. He left behind no family.
The disturbed man who killed Lincoln’s assassin vanished from the world and, for the most part, from the history books.
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