" . . . Evans’s descriptive account is rich, informative, and timely."—Civil War History
"In this well-argued, well-researched, and thoughtful work, Evans does make a strong case that traditional historians should pay more attention to fringe assassination tales. While academic historians can never lay claim to the truth in the way the legend makers doe, the legend makers can sometimes capture the emotions of an event in a way that factual history cannot. There are alternative windows into the past beyond the written word."—American Historical Review
"Evans’s study successfully combines the results of exceptional detective work with a wide-ranging exploration of the Booth legend’s trajectory across the landscape of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American society and culture. . . . Evans completes his investigations by tracking the Booth legend into the postwar era, when revisionist interpretations of the Civil War became orthodox, and he finally asks the reader to consider how and why various groups in American society have been able to harness historically symbolic events, such as Lincoln’s murder, for intolerant ends. His thought-provoking conclusion sets the seal on an admirable study."—The Historian
"Meticulously researched, Evans’ book shines new light on the public’s perception of heroes and villains and our need to mythologize tragedies."—Kentucky Monthly
"A fascinating read for both believers and cynics. . . . While Evans’ book is officially a scholarly work, its appeal reaches across a broad spectrum of mainstream public interest in the Civil War, Lincoln’s death, and government conspiracies."—Southern Historian
"Evans’s chronicle reveals a cross-working of culture and its impact on history. This makes a good study that alternates between head-shaking and chuckles."—James Robertson in the Richmond Times Dispatch
"This provocative debut from Evans traces the Booth legend from its beginning in the weeks following Lincoln’s assassination to the appearance of the ‘Booth mummy,’ the remains of an Oklahoma transient embalmed in 1903 that was destined to be showcased in carnival sideshows across the West. . . . As a mind-teaser this study is worth a read."—Library Journal
“In all the carnival of American culture, surely nothing was more bizarre than the odyssey of the supposed mummy of Lincoln’s assassin. Booth is in our memories, and Evans ably demonstrates why we refuse to put him out.”—William C. Davis, author of The Cause Lost
“In the nether world of conspiracy theories the irrational trumps the rational. This book helps us understand why.”—James M. McPherson, author of Battle Cry of Freedom
“No reader of this fascinating and fast-paced narrative will be less than mesmerized.”—Bertram Wyatt-Brown, author of The Shaping of Southern Culture
“A fresh new perspective on both Booth and American culture.”—Edward L. Ayers, author of In the Presence of Mine Enemies
This provocative debut from Evans (history, Drew Univ.) traces the Booth legend from its beginning in the weeks following Lincoln's assassination to the appearance of the "Booth mummy," the remains of an Oklahoma transient embalmed in 1903 that was destined to be showcased in carnival sideshows across the West. Evans sees the belief in Booth's post-assassination escape and the subsequent display of his alleged corpse as political, cultural, and ideological commemorative activities similar to the ceremonies and reunions that characterize collective remembrance. The Booth myth, he posits, abets the cult of the Lost Cause by resuscitating the life of the white South's vindicator, and his fugitive existence into the 20th century represents the continuation of white Southern unreconstructedness. Even today, notes Evans, the Booth legend lives on as an addendum to a much larger conspiracy culture. He concludes: "The legend's greatest lesson to the present is how subgroups in American culture appropriate deeply symbolic events for harmful purposes. It is a progress that is, unfortunately, ongoing; and vigilance is required lest the traumas of America's very recent past come in for similar treatment." Although some readers will argue that Evans has carried his legend theory to extraordinary lengths, as a mind-teaser his study is worth a read. Recommended for Lincoln collections and large libraries.-John Carver Edwards, Univ. of Georgia Libs., Cleveland Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
