April 14, 2026
Introduction: In this article – on the anniversary of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln – Katie Rebecca Merkley searches old newspapers to read articles that announced the bad news to our ancestors. Katie specializes in U.S. research for family history, enjoys writing and researching, and is developing curricula for teaching children genealogy. She has a website: krgarnergenealogy.com
The Civil War had torn the nation apart. Now that it had ended, it was time to rebuild. However, not everyone was happy with the outcome. President Abraham Lincoln was attending a play with his wife on 14 April 1865 – just five days after the surrender of Confederate General Robert E. Lee – when an assassin shot him.
The president died the next morning. Newspapers were quick to spread the horrible news that shocked the nation.
The Albany Evening Journal must have collected reports about Lincoln’s condition throughout the night, as the article is divided into sections by time. The newspaper gave detailed reports not only on the attacks on Lincoln and his Secretary of State William Seward, but also on what the president had been doing the day before, and what the vice president would face as he became president.
Before his death, Lincoln had been in the process of making peace with Confederate leaders. John Wilkes Booth and his co-conspirators had planned the assassination for some time, at least as early as March 4. A letter with that date was found in Booth’s trunk.
It had been announced in the newspapers that General Grant and his wife would be joining the Lincolns at Ford’s Theatre that night, but instead, he took a train up north. Abraham Lincoln decided they should go anyway so that the audience wouldn’t be disappointed. He was apparently reluctant to go.
The theater was crowded, and everyone seemed to enjoy the show. The president was watching the play Our American Cousin with his wife Mary Todd, Major Henry Rathbone, and Rathbone’s fiancé Clara Harris. Then, in act three, a gunshot was heard, a man leapt from the president’s box onto the stage with a dagger, and Mrs. Lincoln screamed. The president had been shot in the back of the head.
Lincoln was carried off to a nearby house, and doctors tried to treat him. The wound was fatal. Reports sent to New York, presumably via telegraph between 1 and 4 AM, indicated that he remained insensible and was declining. Lincoln died at 7:22 AM the next morning.
Another section of this same article described a nation in mourning.
This article reads:
“The President is dead! For the first time, the annals of the country have been stained by a political assassination! A wanton, cruel, infamous crime has taken off the Chief Magistrate of the country at a moment when all his endeavors were concentrated upon the restoration of peace, and when his heart was full of purposes of mercy! It is a crime against the nation, against humanity, against liberty, that has been perpetrated… The joy of the country at returning peace was about to burst forth in bonfires, processions, feux de joie and illuminations. It is turned to mourning by this blow, which – striking at the person of the Chief Magistrate – is buried in the heart of the country.”
President Lincoln was not the only one attacked that night. Secretary of State William Seward was on his sickbed. The assassin, who remained unidentified, came to his residence, pretending to bring medicine for Seward. Once he was let in, he attacked servants who tried to keep him out of the sick chamber. He stabbed Seward and his son, Frederick Seward, assistant secretary. It was later reported that Seward’s wounds were not dangerous, but his son’s were fatal.
Vice President Andrew Johnson was appointed president in Lincoln’s stead. Said the article about this:
“He has aspirations of true patriotism and capacity for good. Let good men rally to his side, and sustain him through this crisis.”
Another New York newspaper that day officially announced the death of Abraham Lincoln as well as Andrew Johnson’s appointment as president. The new president met with all the cabinet members, and their first order of business was arranging Abraham Lincoln’s funeral.
Another newspaper article proposed building a national monument to Abraham Lincoln. A president who serves his full term(s) and retires is honored and esteemed for the rest of his life. Lincoln was deprived of that, and the nation was in shock. Building a monument seemed a good way to honor the fallen president. The newspaper article suggested collecting donations to fund such a monument.
A few days later, another newspaper posted a life sketch about Abraham Lincoln. He was born in Hardin County, Kentucky, on 12 February 1809. His father was Thomas Lincoln. He began school at age seven with the Bible and Delworth’s spelling book, “good tools in the hands of an earnest soul.” His father moved his family to Indiana in 1817 because he was “dissatisfied with the prospect held out to a man of moderate means in a slave state.” In their new place, Abraham assisted his father in building a log cabin, where the family lived for 12 years. He was ten when his mother died. It was said of her (without naming her) that she “seems to have given him the rudiments of that sturdy moral strength afterwards so conspicuous in his character.”
Abraham continued his education, beginning arithmetic and “eagerly read such books as fell in his way.” In 1830, when Abraham was 21, his father moved his family again to Illinois. Abraham helped his father build fences and plant the farm. Then he “entered into service on his own account,” splitting rails. He earned the “respect and confidence of his fellows.”
He was fertile in resources, quick in perception, never discouraged, and lost no honorable opportunity to better his condition.
Abraham Lincoln served in the Black Hawk War in 1832 and was appointed to the legislature in 1834. Three years later, he began practicing law, which he learned while working as a clerk. He practiced law for six years and was recognized as a leading politician in Illinois in 1844. He began his first term in Congress in 1847. There, he worked to abolish slavery.
In 1860, Lincoln was nominated for president and received the electoral vote from every free state except New Jersey. Southern states began seceding from the Union. Lincoln’s presidency began in early 1861. The Civil War started on 12 April 1861, and Lincoln issued his preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on 22 September 1862.
The life sketch ends with the following paragraph.
Abraham Lincoln left a legacy that has far outlived him. His death was tragic and untimely, making him a martyr for his cause. Thanks to the preservation of old newspapers, we can read what our ancestors read about the tragic event.
Create a free account at GenealogyBank for 7 days to start your journey and discover the stories your ancestors left behind.
Note on the header image: Abraham Lincoln, by Alexander Gardner, 8 November 1863. Credit: Mead Art Museum; Wikimedia Commons.
Related Articles:
