Outlaws - Mary Surratt

In LADIES FIRST: History’s Greatest Female Trailblazers, Winners and Mavericks author Lynn Santa Lucia “celebrates some extraordinary women who have singularly and collectively cleared a path for other females to follow.” Most of these women were true heroes and role models. However, not all found fame in a positive manner. Mary Surratt (1823-1865) is a historical figure not for her constructive activities, but for being the first woman to be executed by the United States government for crimes against the country. (Pictured left)

Born in Waterloo, Maryland, Mary was educated at an all-girls seminary and married at the age of seventeen. She and her husband John had three children and purchased a farm in 1852. The two-story house on the property served as a home as well as a tavern for the community. The Surratt House became a prominent place to congregate for merchants, lawyers and politicians. With the on-set of the Civil War the house became a hub for Southern sympathizers in the Union state.

The war also brought a shortage money, as patrons couldn’t pay their bills. Then, in 1862, John died, leaving Mary under a mountain of debt. She was forced to lease the land and the house and move into a Washington, D.C. townhouse she owned. She converted the upper floor of the house into a boarding house to earn a small income. A frequent visitor to her boarding house was John Wilkes Booth, a friend of tenant Louis Weichmann and Mary’s son John, Jr.
(Surratt House)

On April 18, 1865, three days after Abraham Lincoln died Mary was arrested and charged with conspiracy to kill the President of the United States. The trial against her and seven co-conspirators started on May 9, 1865. The U.S. Attorney-General and President Andrew Johnson declared the actions of the conspirators a wartime act. Therefore, they were tried in a military tribunal, rather than a civil court.

Louis Weichmann was the lead witness against Mary. Though he described her as ‘lady-like in every particular” and ‘exemplary” in character, most of his testimony was very incriminating. He described conversations between himself, Booth and Mary, where the assassination plot was clearly discussed. Weichmann further testified that at the urging of Booth, he and Mary drove out to her former home, Surratt House, three days before the assassination and delivered “a package, done up in paper, about six inches in diameter.” Mary stayed in the house for two hours, during which time Weichmann observed her speaking to Booth. Another conversation between Mary and Booth took place shortly after they arrived back in Washington.

The most damaging testimony, however, came from John M. Lloyd, the man who leased Surratt House. Though Mary testified that she’d traveled to Surrattsville with Weichmann to collect rent, Lloyd said she collected nothing from him. Instead, she gave him a small package containing field glasses. She also instructed him to ready the two Spencer carbines that John, Jr. had left at the tavern several weeks earlier. The guns had been hidden under the joists in a second-floor room.

John Wilkes Booth, after shooting President Lincoln, stopped at Surratt House. Lloyd did as Mary had instructed him to do earlier that day. He handed over a pair of pistols, one of the Spencers and the field glasses.

The trial ended on June 28th, 1865. After a short deliberation, the verdicts were handed down: All eight were found guilty. Mary, along with three others, was sentenced to death. The other four were sentenced to prison.

Several appeals were made for leniency, but they fell on deaf ears. On July 7, 1865, the door to her cell opened and Mary was escorted past four freshly dug graves to a newly built gallows. Four nooses hung before her as she was joined by her three male conspirators. The men were prepared first as Mary sat in a chair and watched.

When her time came, her skirts were wrapped with cotton ties and her wrists were bound. She complained of the pain, but was told “it won’t hurt long.” Her hat and veil were removed and the noose placed around her neck. She was then placed on her spot above the hinged door, next to her male companions. At 1:22 p.m., Mary Surratt was executed.

More reading:

Spartacus Educational
Mary Surratt
Lincoln Conspiracy

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Anna Kathryn Lanier
Where Tumbleweeds Hang Their Hats

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