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Ford’s Theatre. Photo by Drewspr00. Wikimedia Commons.

Top 10 Astonishing Facts About the Ford’s Theatre

The Ford’s Theatre is located in Washington DC. It is famous because it is constructed on the site where the United States president, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. The assassination occurred on 14^th April 1865. He was shot by Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth. The theatre was opened in August 1963.

The theatre was later used as a warehouse and a government office building. In 1932, the building became a museum. It was renovated and reopened as a theatre later on in 1968. And before this, the building served many purposes making it rich in history.

Ford’s Theatre is a destination for anyone who wishes to explore the legacy of Abraham Lincoln. This includes the motivation behind his assassination. The theatre also features the struggle for a united country. Let us now look at the Top 10 Astonishing Facts about the Ford Theatre.

1. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated on the site of the theatre

Washington, D.C.: Ford’s Theatre interior from the door outside of the box seat where Lincoln was assasinated. Photo by dbking.

On the day of the assassination, 14^th April 1865, President Lincoln had tickets for ‘Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp’ at the National Theatre. However, Lincoln was convinced by his wife who preferred to watch British actress Laura Keene in ‘Our American Cousin’. The film was being featured at Ford’s New Theatre.

John Wilkes Booth, a famous actor, shot the president who was in the presidential box from behind. John Wilkes Booth undevoured to assassinate the president to aid the confederacy. Tad Lincoln, the president’s youngest son, was attending a performance at the National Theatre when the assassination occurred.

2. It was originally built as a house of worship

The building was originally a house of worship. It was constructed in 1833 as the second meeting house of the Fire Baptist Church. The pastor then was Obadiah Bruen Brown. In 1861, the congregation moved to a newly built structure. John T. Ford bought the building and renovated it into a theatre. He first called it Ford’s Athenaeum. The building was destroyed by fire in 1862 and was later on rebuilt by John T. Ford.

3. Three interior floors collapsed in 1893

Ford Theatre building. Photo by Ingfbruno. .

In June 1893 a 40-foot section of the building’s façade collapsed from the third floor. Many War Department clerks were killed in the incident. Further, almost 70 other people got injured. 

The building was repaired and continued to be used as a government warehouse and storeroom until 1911. For many years after this, the building remained vacant. It was later taken up by the Office of Public Buildings and Parks of the National Capital in 1928.

4. Between 1863 and 1865, the president attended eight performances in the theatre

President Abraham Lincoln was a fan of theatres. Ford’s theatre being the newest one yet, was at that point his favorite. Between March 1862 and April 1865, Lincoln attended many performances in Ford’s theatre.

One of the performances he attended was The Marble Heart which was featured in November 1863. The performance starred John Wilkes Booth. A year before his assassination, Lincoln attended a Treasury Department ball and reception at Ford’s Theatre.

5. The theatre’s athenaeum was engulfed in fire in 1862

In December 1862, the Ford’s Athenaeum succumbed to a fire. The fire was caused by a faulty gas meter in the basement. Immediately after the fire, Ford embarked on rebuilding the theatre. It was built bigger, better, and more magnificent. On 27^th August 1863, the current theatre was reopened as Ford’s New Theatre.

6. It has had multiple names before

Ford’s Theatre has previously had many other names. These include The George Christy Opera House, Ford’s Athenaeum, and Ford’s New Theatre. The building was bought by theatre entrepreneur John T. Ford from a church.

He adapted it for use as a theatre. Ford rented the building to George Christy who advertised the theatre as The George Christy Opera House. The other names were borrowed from John Ford the original owner of the theatre.

7. The architect of the theatre was James J. Gifford

This is where Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln were sitting when the President was shot by John Wilkes Booth. Photo by Cory Hartman. Wikimedia Commons.

Construction of the structure that still stands today began in 1863. James J. Gifford served as the architect and builder of the building. It was modeled after the design of Baltimore’s Holliday Street Theatre. The building was initially a Victorian-style theatre. It was restored by National Park Service architect Charles W. Lessig.

8. After the assassination, the theater was reopened in 1968

Funding for the restoration of the theatre before reopening was approved in 1964. Despite lengthy searches, the original plans for the building were not found. Photographs and drawings were used to supplement details used in the restoration. 

The restoration process was completed in 1968. Thereafter, the theatre was reopened on 30^th January 1968. Even after its restoration, the Presidential Box is never occupied.

9. The Ford’s Theatre Museum stands beneath the theatre

It contains portions of the Olroyd Collection of Lincolniana. The museum is run by the National Park Service and the private non-profit Ford’s Theatre Society. The collection in the museum is inclusive of various items related to the assassination.

These include; the Derringer pistol used to assassinate the president, Booth’s diary, and the original door to Lincoln’s theater box. His coat, statutes, and paintings also exist in the museum. The museum also features his presidential cabinet and his family life.  

10. John Wilkes Booth was an actor familiar with Ford’s Theatre

Ford Theatre. Photo by DestinationFearFan. Wikimedia Commons.

After the opening of Ford’s Theatre, John Wilkes Booth was one of the first actors inside the theatre. he played in Charles Selby’s The Marble Heart. in January 1865, he played Romeo in the play Romeo and Juliet.

The National Intelligencer called his performance in this play ‘the most satisfactory of all renderings of that fine character’. The fact that he worked in the theatre gave him an upper hand in the assassinations.  He did the inside job of shooting the president since he knew the layout of the theatre.