150 Years: The Lincoln Assassination

"Abraham Lincoln O-116, 1865-crop" by Alexander Gardner - Library of Congress

One hundred and fifty years ago on April 14, our country was changed forever by a single gun shot to a sitting president by a frustrated, outspoken, pro-Confederate actor.  The history that surrounds the Lincoln assassination is so rich and deep, that a book would do well to cover the topic and all its facets, let alone a humble blog.  However, there are some lesser-known historic facts surrounding that terrible day to which few are privy - a glaring shortcoming in our education considering Mr. Lincoln's standing as the most beloved and greatest U.S. President to date.  Presented here will be a highly abridged version of the events leading up to that date, the event itself, and its results.

Booth invited to the White House

It is well documented that John Wilkes Booth was a dedicated Confederate sympathizer and was technically a Southerner, being born in Bel Air, Maryland around 160 miles south of the Mason-Dixon line.  His parents (a Shakespearean trained father and his mistress) were English and had made the trip 17 years earlier.  By the 1850's Booth was performing in Shakespeare plays of his own, receiving rave reviews after a somewhat rocky start, and was generally recognized as supremely handsome.  His genius and good looks were only proclaimed more loudly after a national tour in the 1860s.  The start of the Civil War pulled Booth passionately in the direction of the South, though he continued his acting.  In fact, Lincoln has seen Booth perform on several occasions, and like most theatergoers, was quite impressed with the young man's talents.  In 1863, the president had gone so far as to invite the actor to his box and even to the White House, but Booth had avoided the visits with excuses and is quoted telling acquaintances, "I would rather have the applause of a Negro to that of the president!"

A Booth Saves A Lincoln's Life?

The two men's lives would cross again in 1864.  John Wilkes Booth's brother Edwin was also a famous Shakespearean actor, arguably the most famous of the 19th century.  Unlike his brother, Edwin was a Unionist who seldom tolerated John's tirades against Lincoln and the North.  In a show of loyalty, and perhaps a jab at his brother, Edwin refused to perform in the South as the Civil War wore on.  One day in Jersey City, NJ, Edwin was taking a train to Richmond, VA with John T. Ford, the owner of the now infamous Ford's Theater.  Also at that same station was Robert Todd Lincoln, son of the president.  Robert would recall the events some years later in an interview with The Century Magazine.

"The incident occurred while a group of passengers were late at night purchasing their sleeping car places from the conductor who stood on the station platform at the entrance of the car. The platform was about the height of the car floor, and there was of course a narrow space between the platform and the car body. There was some crowding, and I happened to be pressed by it against the car body while waiting my turn. In this situation the train began to move, and by the motion I was twisted off my feet, and had dropped somewhat, with feet downward, into the open space, and was personally helpless, when my coat collar was vigorously seized and I was quickly pulled up and out to a secure footing on the platform. Upon turning to thank my rescuer I saw it was Edwin Booth, whose face was of course well known to me, and I expressed my gratitude to him, and in doing so, called him by name."

Edwin Booth had by no small measure just saved the life of the president's son!  Robert was not keen to tell his parents the story, but made the event known to several others all of whom expressed their gratitude for Booth's courage and quick action, with many pledging him their service if needed.

Lot 1144: Outstanding Presentation Cased Set of Philadelphia Deringer Percussion Pistols with Accessories
The pistol on the left is the exact model used by Booth to assassinate President Lincoln.

Booth Plans to Kidnap Lincoln

In 1864 General Ulysses S. Grant suspended the exchange of POW between the Union and Confederacy in order to further deprive the South of desperately needed manpower.  That event gave rise to Booth's plot to kidnap the president and to trade him as a hostage for Southern prisoners.  If Lincoln's 1864 re-election didn't send Booth's loathing into a fever pitch, then his advocacy of the 13th Amendment, effectively abolishing slavery, certainly would have.  The president had made, "himself a king," slavery was now in grave danger, and the Confederacy was circling the drain.  A dramatic change would require a dramatic action.

The plan was to kidnap Lincoln while he was attending a March 17, 1865 performance of "Still Waters Run Deep," at the Campbell Military Hospital.  Booth had assembled the men necessary and must have been deflated to find out the president had made alternate plans at the last moment to instead attend a ceremony at the National Hotel involving the presentation of a captured Confederate battle flag.  It was the same hotel Booth was currently using as a residence!  Within days, Booth would lose his window of opportunity.  On April 3, Richmond would fall.  April 8 brought the surrender of the main Confederate Army at the Appomattox Court House, and on April 11, Booth attended an impromptu speech at the White House.  Lincoln gave the speech to a crowd on the White House lawn from his window and mentioned granting suffrage to former slaves.  By the 14th, Confederate President Jefferson Davis had fled the temporary capital of  Danville, and Booth had had enough.  Desperate and enraged, with no Confederacy to help him barter a kidnapped Lincoln, Booth's plan changed from abduction to assassination.

More Missed Opportunities

It seems by now that Booth had no shortage of opportunities to murder the president of the United States.  He missed a kidnapping, and excepting a small change in schedule, could have done so in the very building where he lived.  The previous paragraph recalls Booth's visit to the White House, which seems unbelievable.  Why was the assassination not performed then?  Did Booth, not anticipating the remarks regarding slaves not come prepared with the necessary lethal tools?  Was security doing its job?  No sources I can find can state definitively why Booth did not act that night.

For that matter, nor can they say why he did not act at Lincoln's inauguration on March 4, 1865.  Booth attended the event as the guest of his then secret finacée who was the daughter of a man slated as the next U.S. Ambassador to Spain.  In a small pocket calendar found on Booth's body after his death, were several damning entries he wrote while a fugitive.  They shine a clear light into the mind of a delusional, desperate zealot.  One of the entries recalls the inauguration and exclaims, "What an excellent chance I had, if I wished, to kill the President on Inauguration day!"

Lot 1149: Pair of Philadelphia Deringer Percussion Pistols
With the exception of the silver fore end cap and the ramrod, this is another nearly identical model to the assassination weapon, right down to the checkering and engraving.

Good Friday

April 14, 1865.  President Abraham Lincoln awakes in such a cheerful mood that many note the change from a previously tired, somber, and war-weary leader.  Expecting the news of  Confederate General Joseph E Johnston's surrender, he saw himself at the end of a long ordeal and the beginning of a great peace.  Booth saw him as a target.  His urgency and desperation mixed together in a dangerous cocktail.  Upon visiting his mailbox at Ford's Theater, Booth discovered that the President, General Grant, and their wives were to attend that night's showing of Our American Cousin.  Though he didn't need the "insider information," the daily papers told the same story, much to the theater's delight.

With few other thoughts, he went to a boarding house run by Mary Surratt.  He asked her to send a package for him to Surrattsville (now Clinton, MD) and to have his guns and ammunition ready for his pick-up.  Booth had stored them there on a prior occasion as Surratt's boarding house was a frequent meeting place for the conspirators.  The package he had sent was for himself and Booth retrieved the package within hours of the assassination while on the run from authorities.  Within three months Mary Surratt would be the first woman tried and executed by the federal government.  He would also arrange a getaway horse with local livery stable owner James W. Pumphrey.  To Pumphrey this might not have been anything unusual.  His stables were located next to the National Hotel, where Booth lived, and Booth regularly hired a particular horse from him.  At some time during the day, the industrious assassin also took advantage of his friendship with John Ford and his access to the theater to create a spy hole into the Presidential Box to perform last second reconnaissance before the deed.

Lincoln had an 11 o'clock meeting with his cabinet and General Grant that day.  It was then that Grant cancelled his plans with the First Couple, though some sources say that due to tensions between the wives that the plans were never made in the first place.  In any case, a suitable guest was eventually found in Major Henry Rathbone and his finacée Clara Harris.  Allegedly, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton begged Lincoln not to go out on that night, or any night while the blood still boiled hot in Rebel veins, for fear he might be shot.  After dinner, Mrs. Lincoln was not  feeling well and debated not attending the play, but the president, tired but still in a fine mood, said he needed a laugh and would attend if she decided to stay in for the evening.  With that she elected to attend as well, but the couple would first stop by the War Department to see if word from North Carolina had arrived about Johnston's surrender.  It hadn't.  His body guard William Crook, also fearing some ill against the president, asked if he could accompany them to the theater if they insisted on attending.  Again, Lincoln dismissed his worries and declined his volunteer to serve as an extra guard.  After all, they would have guards posted in and outside their box.  Meanwhile, Booth had returned to the National Hotel to pen a letter to the editor of the National Intelligencer, in which he detailed his early plans to kidnap Lincoln, how they had changed to a conspiracy of assassination, and signed his name - also listing the names of his fellow conspirators.  He then downed a drink at the Star Saloon, next to Ford's Theater and waited for the play to begin.

The Lincolns and their guests arrived in their carriage after the start of the play.  The entrance of the parties into their box caused the play to pause and the orchestra to play "Hail to the Chief" while the packed house of 1,700 rose to give the president a standing ovation and "vociferous cheering."  Booth would arrive in an alley behind the theater around 9:30 p.m. and asked a theater employee Edmund Spangler to hold his horse for him.  Spangler, with other things to do, in turn asked Joseph "Peanut" Burroughs to hold the high-spirited mare.  No one thought twice about Booth being in the theater.  He was well known and no one would suspect anything if he were to call on the president.  The assassin was armed with his now infamous Deringer pistol and a large Rio Grand camp knife with a stag horn handle.  Acid etched on each side of its blade were the well known phrases, "Land of the Free / Home of the Brave" and "Liberty / Independence."

There were two doors between the Presidential Box and Booth.  The first was to be guarded by a man named John Parker.  Known for his hard drinking, Parker was part of Washington's Metropolitan Police Force and had a several infractions listed in his file.  His spot in a hallway outside the Presidential Box only allowed him to hear the play and it wasn't long before he relocated himself to a better seat.  At intermission, it is said that he, Lincoln's footman (Charles Forbes) and his coachman (Francis P. Burke) all absconded to a nearby saloon for drinks.  Whether Parker was at a better seat or at the pub, when the assassin came to the door, there was no one guarding it.

After entering the first door, which had been closed, but not locked, Booth quickly barricaded it with a large plank so that it could not be pushed in from the outside.  He looked through his peep hole and seeing that the president was indeed in attendance, all there was to do was steel his nerves and wait.  Booth was extremely familiar with the play showing and was waiting for the second scene of the third act when a particularly funny line would be delivered. "Don't know the manners of good society, eh? Well, I guess I know enough to turn you inside out, old gal; you sockdologizing old man-trap!"  The resulting laughter would muffle the gun shot.  At the decided moment, Booth entered the darkened box, pulled the .44-caliber Deringer from his pocket, aimed it at the president's head, and fired.  Lincoln would have been laughing as the bullet stuck.

"The Assassination of Abraham Lincoln" by Currier & Ives

The projectile entered just below the president's left ear and left little evidence of its intrusion.  From there it barreled diagonally through his brain before lodging behind his right eye.  The president instantly slumped in his chair amid a large cloud of smoke.  His theater companion for the evening, Major Rathbone, not one dozen feet away, gives the best eyewitness account of what happened.

"When the second scene of the third act was being performed, and while I was intently observing the proceedings upon the stage, with my back toward the door, I heard the discharge of a pistol behind me, and, looking round, saw through the smoke a man between the door and the President. The distance from the door to where the President sat was about four feet. At the same time I heard the man shout some word, which I thought was 'Freedom!' I instantly sprang toward him and seized him. He wrested himself from my grasp, and made a violent thrust at my breast with a large knife. I parried the blow by striking it up, and received a wound several inches deep in my left arm .... The man rushed to the front of the box, and I endeavored to seize him again, but only caught his clothes as he was leaping over the railing of the box. The clothes, as I believe, were torn in the attempt to hold him. As he went over upon the stage, I cried out, 'Stop that man.' I then turned to the President; his position was not changed; his head was slightly bent forward and his eyes were closed. I saw that he was unconscious, and, supposing him mortally wounded, rushed to the door for the purpose of calling medical aid.

On reaching the outer door of the passage way, I found it barred by a heavy piece of plank, one end of which was secured in the wall, and the other resting against the door. It had been so securely fastened that it required considerable force to remove it. This wedge or bar was about four feet from the floor. Persons upon the outside were beating against the door for the purpose of entering. I removed the bar, and the door was opened. Several persons, who represented themselves as surgeons, were allowed to enter. I saw there Colonel Crawford, and requested him to prevent other persons from entering the box.

I then returned to the box, and found the surgeons examining the President's person. They had not yet discovered the wound. As soon as it was discovered, it was determined to remove him from the theater. He was carried out, and I then proceeded to assist Mrs. Lincoln, who was intensely excited, to leave the theater. On reaching the head of the stairs, I requested Major Potter to aid me in assisting Mrs. Lincoln across the street to the house where the President was being conveyed. . .

In a review of the transactions, it is my confident belief that the time which elapsed between the discharge of the pistol and the time when the assassin leaped from the box did not exceed thirty seconds. Neither Mrs. Lincoln nor Miss Harris had left their seats."

Booth Escapes

Missing from Rathbone's account are several important details.  Foremost, how severly he had been injured.  After firing the Deringer pistol, Booth dropped it and drew the knife when Rathbone attacked him.  The slash that Rathbone parried cut his arm severely, down to the bone in numerous accounts.  Even still Rathbone pursued the assassin as he attempted to leap over the box ledge and onto the stage, but the young Major was not the only resolute man.  Booth, having injured his leg after landing awkwardly on the stage, still managed to stand, thrust the bloody knife in the air, shout "Sic semper tyrannis," the Virginia state motto translated as "Thus always to tyrants," and cross the stage to a backstage door where Burroughs was still holding his horse.  Booth struck Burroughs' forehead with the butt of his knife, mounted his horse, allegedly also kicked him in the chest for good measure with his functioning leg, and sped away on his rented horse.

Booth Had Other Guns As Well

Booth had planned ahead. He and co-conspirator David Herold had made it to Surratt's tavern by midnight and picked up the firearms Booth had sent there earlier.  Waiting for the duo were a pair of Colt revolvers, an 1860 Army and an 1851 Navy pistol, as well as two Spencer repeating carbines.  Booth had also previously lent weapons to all his co-conspirators.

Lot 263: Extremely Rare Factory Documented Historical Confederate Colt Fluted Cylinder Model 1860 Army Revolver

Lot 1080: U.S. Civil War Spencer Saddle Ring Carbine

• Lewis Powell, who was to kill Secretary of State William Seward, was given a Whitney revolver and a knife.  Powell made quite a mess of things.  On the pretense of delivering medicine to Seward he encountered Seward's son Frederick, who insisted on taking the drugs to his father.  Powell then shot at Frederick and beat him with the Whitney, breaking it.  He burst into Seward's bedroom, threw aside his daughter and proceeded to stab the secretary of state about the face and neck.  He was quickly tackled by a soldier assigned to Seward, but Powell escaped and fled, stabbing a messenger en route to his getaway horse. However, hearing the ruckus from inside his accomplice had left with both horses, leaving Powell to hoof it back to the Surratt boarding house.

Lot 259: Exceptional Cased Whitney New Pocket Percussion Revolver with Accessories

• George Azerodt, assigned to kill Vice President Andrew Johnson, was also given a revolver and Bowie knife.  He was staying in the same hotel as Johnson, but couldn't muster the fortitude for the act and instead got drunk at the hotel bar.  He would wander the streets that night, throwing the knife somewhere along the way and selling the pistol in Georgetown.  He would later be captured when inquiring about Johnson's location the day after the assassination.

When examining the other weapons at the hands of the conspirators, the plan becomes much more than a simple assassination.  This was a plan to sever the head of the Union government by killing the President, Vice President, and Secretary of State, the top three officials of the executive branch.  It was a desperate, last ditch attempt to rally the South as the North reeled from an unprecedented blow.  Also targeted by the killers was Ulysses S. Grant, who having cancelled his plans with Lincoln, left on a train for Philadelphia earlier that day.  Had he not, the knife Booth used was intended for him.

After retrieving the guns, Booth would proceed to the house of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, who would splint Booth's leg and make him a pair of crutches.  After making the long escape into Virginia, the rented horses would be shot.

Aftermath

The nation was struck with grief.  Even newspapers that had previously lambasted Lincoln at every turn, expressed regret at his death, as did Generals Johnston and Lee.  Booth, in his flight, could not believe he was not a hero and lamented this fact in his final writings.  While the nation openly mourned the president, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton was charging full steam ahead in an effort to round up absolutely anyone who had even breathed a whiff of the plot.  It was a huge embarrassment that not only had an assassin actually reached the president to complete his treacherous act, but that he did so in front of nearly 1,700 witnesses, escaped on a horse, and had vanished for days.  By Day 6 after the shooting, Stanton issued a $100,000 reward for Booth's capture and lesser amounts for his two associates.  It was a massive sum to fit an unprecedented crime, especially considering the average daily wage was $1.  Posters were printed and well distributed.  On Day 12, Booth would be gunned down inside a barn set aflame by his pursuers.  Of those arrested for involvement in the assassination, eight were tried by a military tribunal.  After seven weeks and 366 witnesses, all were found guilty.  Four would hang, three were sentenced to life in prison, and Spangler, to whom Booth had given his horse, would receive six years (some witness accounts say Spangler physically impeded people pursuing Booth and told them not to talk about which direction he fled).

Execution of the four condemned assassins on July 7, 1865 at Fort McNair.  Image: Library of Congress

Who knows how history may have been altered had Abraham Lincoln been allowed to finish his second term in office.  Many postulate that Lincoln would have sped along the Reconstruction of the South and further advanced Civil Rights, instead of having them flounder for another 100 years.  Lincoln was unquestionably more apt than his successor to help reconcile the nation and get her whole again.  In contrast, Johnson ignored Civil Rights, did little to reconcile, survived impeachment by a single vote, and is generally considered one of the worst U.S. presidents in history.

But today, let us not remember the ineptness of Johnson, nor the the rancor and violence of Booth.  Instead, let us recall the rail splitter, the politician, the avid reader, the self-made man, the wrestler, the abolitionist, the story teller, the lawyer, the orator, the nationalist, and preserver of the Union - Abraham Lincoln - who lost his life serving a country at the brink of dissolution.




-Written by Joel Kolander



SOURCES

http://www.fords.org/john-wilkes-booth-s-escape

http://www.nationalparks.org/connect/blog/artifact-gun-shot-lincoln

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-blood-relics-from-the-lincoln-assassination-180954331/?no-ist

"President Lincoln is Shot, 1865," EyeWitness to History, www.eyewitnesstohistory.com (2009).

Museum Quality

Rock Island Auction Company is always offering some rather stunning arms: mint condition antiques, rare variations, gorgeous special order arms, classic military arms, unusual prototypes, and all kinds of items tied to important figures from bank robbers to presidents.  This considered, perhaps the large number of "museum grade" pieces in this auction should come as no surprise.  While I would personally love to have written about each one individually, the December 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction draws nigh and so we're forced to cover several of these incredible items in one go.

The best part is that, unlike a museum, these items do not rest behind glass, inaccessible to the collecting community.  Each and every one of these pieces will be sold to collectors and investors.  The items are spectacular in their own right, but the fact that they have somehow evaded curators' grasps for sometimes hundreds of years makes them all the more remarkable.  Take some time to look and judge for yourself.

Peter Knecht Solingen Production Gold and Niter Blue Accented French Presentation Sword with Scabbard Inscribed from the National Guard of France to the Marquis de Lafayette, Hero of the American Revolution

For those unfamiliar, Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, the Marquis de Lafayette, was a hero of the Revolutionary War.  He was not a man who led a single heroic charge or captured a single machine gun nest.  No, Lafayette fought in numerous battles, held many ranks, and even helped secure critical aid and troops from the French.  The United States has perhaps never had such a devoted and passionate ally since.  George Washington himself, upon the Marquis' departure for France at the end of the Revolution wrote him a letter stating,

"I owe it to your friendship and to my affectionate regard for you, my dear Marquis, not to let you leave this country without carrying with you fresh marks of my attachment to you, and new expressions of the high sense I entertain of your military conduct and other important services in the course of the last campaign, although the latter are too well known to need testimony of my approbation."

High praise indeed from the Father of Our Country.  Lafayette came from very wealthy roots, joined the military at 14, as was family tradition, and after the American Revolution held various roles helping to form the tumultuous French government.  The day after the Bastille was stormed, he would be made commander-in-chief of the National Guard of France - an order keeping force comprised of urban militia units throughout France.  Not long after he would propose the symbol of the French tricolor, essentially the French national flag of today.  He held numerous French military titles through those conflicts, would be taken as a prisoner of war by the Austrians and the Prussians for 5 years until 1897 when his release was secured by Napoleon Bonaparte.  The Emperor of France would go on to offer Lafayette several high-ranking positions, but he refused them all, stating that he might have accepted them had they come from a democratic government.

He would continue a long and close friendship with George Washington until Washington's death in 1800, even naming his son Georges-Washington Lafayette.  Eventually Lafayette would also form a solid friendship with Thomas Jefferson exchanging many letters and gifts over years of correspondence.  In 1824, Lafayette was invited by President Monroe and Congress to visit the United States in honor of its pending 50th birthday.  He was greeted like a modern rock star.  Revolutionary War veterans greeted him, citizens rightly recognized him as a national hero the likes of which might not be seen again in their lifetimes.  His initial arrival in new York was celebrated with four non-stop days and his trip to Boston was lined with well-wishers.  This set the tone for Lafayette's entire trip, with towns and cities bound and determined to show their respect, enthusiasm, and gratitude to a man who had been essential to their liberty.  It was on this trip that Lafayette of course visited his old friend George Washington's grave and took some soil from Bunker Hill so that when he died, as he would in 1834, it could be sprinkled on his Parisian grave.  A true American icon in his belief and commitment to representational government, this sword would have no problems finding a place of prominence in any museum.

Elaborate Cased Exhibition Grade Silver and Gold Inlaid LeFaucheux Pinfire Revolvers

Moving from the historic, to the aesthetic brings us to this incredible pair of exhibition grade LeFaucheux pinfire revolvers.  The craftsmanship and valuable materials used in its construction would easily place it in museums that appreciate such art, such as The Met in New York City.  This is truly high art with a revolver as the artist's medium.  They shine as if they were jeweled and not a single detail was spared in their creation by Parisian gunsmith LeFaucheux, whose notable contributions to firearms also include the pinfire cartridge in 1835, one of the first self-contained cartridges, which in turn assisted in the design of breech-loading firearms.

The pistols themselves are exquisite.  Perhaps most noticeable are the revolvers' high polish blue finish on the barrels, cylinders, frames, and butt caps.  Said finish provides a myriad of vibrant blue, aqua, indigo, purple, and royal blue shades that provide a striking backdrop for the ornate and superbly executed gold and silver inlays which cover a large percentage of the guns.  The delicate lines of precious metal intertwine to form geometric designs, floral scroll work, and elegant borders.  The two-piece grips are fine antique ivory and end in a lavish inlaid silver band and a high polish butt cap that also includes more gold and silver inlay.

Even the case of the pistols is extraordinary!  Constructed of ebony and lined with striking red velvet, it has brass handles on its sides and its lid bears a brass inlay and monogram.  The compliment of tools was designed to match the set of pistols: the cap container has a blued, silver & gold inlaid insert, the oiler also wears the same high polish blue and has a silver and gold inlaid  applicator handle, and even the screw drivers are silver inlaid.   While one could dedicate several pages to adequately describe this stunning pieces, we'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Abraham Lincoln Hand Signed 1864 Presidential Appointment

Certainly, Abraham Lincoln is a man who needs no introduction to American readers.  Largely considered the greatest American President, his presence in American history is huge.  This document signed by Lincoln and his Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton, appointed Henry S. Williams as an Additional paymaster for the volunteer forces on June 3, 1864. Our official description succinctly details the position:

"During the Civil War, the U.S. president had the power to appoint paymasters at a rate of one paymaster to every two regiments. Paymasters served under the command of a paymaster general, an officer with the rank of colonel. Under the colonel were two deputy paymasters with the rank of lieutenant colonel. Under the deputy paymasters were 25 deputies with the rank of major. Deputies or additional paymasters were appointed to temporary duty only."


Given Lincoln's steering of American history, anything authentic associated with the man is nearly guaranteed to take on new and important significance.  This genuine, original, hand signed document was not only graced by the man, but also has strong and undeniable ties to that bloodiest of American conflicts - the Civil War.  This is not only an extraordinary document of pure Americana, but also a museum-worthy piece of history of these United States.

Documented Historically Significant One of A Kind Charter Arms Undercover Revolver Used In the Attempted Assassination of Governor George Wallace of Alabama

Many people my age have seen the movie "Taxi Driver" starring Robert DeNiro and Jodie Foster, but few are aware of the effect it had on a pair of psychopaths in previous decades.  Most notably is the assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981 by a man obsessed with Jodie Foster and determined to get her attention by shooting the leader of the free world.  Lesser known to later generations is the assassination attempt of Alabama Gov. George Wallace by loner Arthur Bremmer.

The aspiring assassin had also been motivated by the final scenes of "Taxi Driver" and was determined to gain an infamy for himself after feeling overwhelmingly lonely and anonymous.  His "story" has been well told thanks to a detailed, rambling, and horribly misspelled diary he began keeping nearly two months after his first relationship ended.  It was only three dates, but it would be hard to argue that the event did not add to his feelings of loneliness.

The journal begins, "Now I start my diary of my personal plot to kill by pistol either Richard Nixon or George Wallace." Feeling that killing Nixon would make him more famous, he began attending events where Nixon would be featured. Bremmer would often attend armed, but could not get close enough or when we could, was thwarted by tight security. Bremmer had delusions of grandeur and would write things in his diary like, "I'm as important as the start of WWI. I just need the little opening and a second of time."

Gov. George Wallace

Making an attempt on Reagan's life was proving impossible, so Brenner switched his attentions to divisive Gov. George Wallace.  Wallace was a segregationist/populist Democrat, known famously for his inaugural speech in 1963 that included the line,

"In the name of the greatest people that have ever trod this earth, I draw the line in the dust and toss the gauntlet before the feet of tyranny, and I say segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever."

Later that year, Wallace made headlines by personally blocking the doors at the University of Alabama to prevent the entry of black students, and again at four separate elementary schools in Huntsville, Alabama.  By the time of his assassination attempt, he was making his third run for the U.S. presidency.  He was a national figure and his would-be assassin was going to try to exploit that.  During the Democratic presidential primaries in May 1972, Wallace would be approached by Bremmer while shaking hands in a crowd.  He fired all five shots of .38 special ammunition, twice hitting the Governor in the chest and the abdomen, and wounding three bystanders: a state trooper, a Secret Service agent, and a campaign volunteer.  All shot would survive, but one of the bullets that struck Wallace would lodge in his spinal cord, permanently paralyzing him from the waist down.

Nobody won.  Wallace's presidential bid was all but over, even though he easily retained his place in the Governor's mansion.  The assassination attempt also cast doubts on his health during fourth and final run at the presidency in 1976.  Bremmer also gained nothing.  For one, it would forever be known as an "attempt,"  not a an actual assassination.  He did not get the infamy of Lee Harvey Oswald, John Wilkes Booth, or even Sirhan Sirhan.  In fact, it is doubtful he even became more well known than the movie character he so desperately tried to emulate.  Instead, he spent 35 years of his life in prison, though he has been out on parole since 2007.

Wallace's assassination is reportedly at the root of his change of heart toward segregation. In the late 70's, he became a born-again Christian, apologizing to African-American civil rights leaders.  Of his "Stand in the Schoolhouse Door," in 1979 he recanted by saying, "I was wrong.  Those days are over, and they ought to be over."  In 1995, he even wrote to his would-be assassin offering forgiveness and seeking reconciliation.

An important political figure for decades in the 20th century, the assassination attempt rocked the nation and was an important event in the lives of many Americans.  The revolver for sale isn't just a link to the history that happened that day, it IS a part of that history.  This small, unassuming, 5-shot, blued, walnut gripped, snub nose changed U.S. history that day.  It is accompanied by small library of documentation, police reports, hospital records, a nine page Report of investigation by the Prince George County Police, and the original sales receipt when the gun was sold to Bremmer.  Any museum would love to have this behind glass in their collection, but we offer to the collecting public.

Honorable Mention

The following two guns are also significant, but have been already been discussed in previous articles.

Outstanding One-of-A-Kind Serial Number 1 Swiss Model 1908 Mexican Contract Mondragon Semi-Automatic Rifle

When the NRA Firearms Museum titles their video on this model of rifle, "A National Firearms Museum Treasure Gun," the item clearly has an important significance.  One of the earliest semi-automatic rifles ever made, it is largely accepted as being the first to see wide military use.  It was used by Mexico, Switzerland, and nearly a dozen other countries.  Particularly of note is its use by the Germans in their aircraft during the Great War.  Before the advent of machine guns in aviary use, the rear seated soldier or those in observation balloons would be armed with these rifles, then dubbed the "Flyers self loading carbine model of 1915."  We don't often associate rifles with aerial combat, but this gun has the unique honor of that distinction.  The NRA's 1st Vice President and avid tank collector Allan D. Cors puts it best in the above linked video when he says, "you're witnessing firearms history at its finest."

The best part is Mr. Cors is speaking of the rifle in the video, which is a fine specimen and appears to be serial number 2756.  The Mondragon to be sold by Rock Island Auction Company this December is in excellent condition and is serial number one.  The rifle itself in this condition would make any collector happy, but the possibility of owning the very first of these historic rifles should have the attention of collectors and investors from around the world.

Documented "National Treasure" Factory Engraved and Inscribed Savage Model 1907 Semi-Automatic Pistol Presented To Buffalo Bill Cody By The Factory

We spoke at length in last week's article about this once-in-a-lifetime pistol, so we won't beat a dead horse.  However, to speak of museum quality pieces and omit this historic and direct tie to the prairie, Westward Expansion, and the Old West would be borderline unforgivable.  To read last week's article on the Model 1907 Savage pistol presented to Buffalo Bill Cody by the Savage factory, please click here.

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Each and every one of these guns could unquestionably placed be in a museum. They deserve it.  Their craftsmanship, innovation, history, and remarkable preservation have earned them that right.  While these are extraordinary examples of the quality in our December 2014 Premiere Firearms Auction, they are far from all-inclusive.  Give our online catalog a search today to see for yourselves.  Or, for more educational content on some incredible firearms, head over to our YouTube Channel and sit back while you hear all about them.

-written by Joel Kolander