Well-known as the assassin of
Abraham Lincoln, actor John Wilkes Booth was reportedly turned into a mummy,
some thirty years after Lincoln's death, and exhibited in the backroom of an
Enid, Oklahoma funeral parlor and many carnival sideshows. This myth mixes a number of themes from American
history: government cover up, conspiracy theories, and the display of
human remains at carnivals. Was Booth able to escape his pursuers and
live another 30 years? Or did a drifter known as David George try to convince
people that he was John Wilkes Booth, either for drinks or attention? In either
event, a mummy identified as that of John Wilkes Booth toured the country for
years.
| What's special about
the mummy |
The mummy
itself was not especially well created and received a number of
treatments by the mortician. Preservation seems to have been maintained by frequent
applications of Vaseline. Interestingly, the mummy's black hair turned white
over the years.
The mummy, no
matter its condition or location, is special because of the legend surrounding
it.
According to C. Wyatt Evans, the
mummy was last seen in New Hope Pennsylvania in 1976. Since then, it seems to be
have been purchased by a private collector who values privacy. Some people have
tried to track it down, but at this point, no one has been able to locate the
collector--or the mummy.
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Where to find more information
the
mummy |
|
The
Legend of John Wilkes Booth: Myth, Memory, and a Mummy
traces the legend of the Booth mummy, both the details that gave rise to the
myth and the need that many people had to believe the myth. |
American
Brutus: John Wilkes Booth and the Lincoln Conspiracies doesn't
concern the legendary mummy; it deals instead with the truth and myth behind Lincoln's assassination--was
there a conspiracy? Oliver Stone take note. |
The
Reluctant Assassin doesn't provide the facts, but imagines
"what if." It's a novel in which a man renovating an old
structure finds the mummified remains of a man and a diary. The diary
seems to have been written by infamous assassin John Wilkes Booth. |
|
 The
Mummy by Gordon
Grice is a highly readable four-page article in the
November/December 2004 issue of Oklahoma Today. Grice visited the hotel
where David George died and provides plenty of details with his
behind-the-scenes look at the death site. Seven excellent photos are included with the
article, including three of the mummy. You can order a back copy of this issue
by following this
link. And if you want to read something else by Gordon Grice, why not
try his book The
Red Hourglass : Lives of the Predators? It covers the black widow, the
praying mantis, and the brown recluse spider in some amazing prose. Highly
recommended!
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Other
Books about John Wilkes Booth at Amazon.com
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