David Herold was the young man who stayed with John Wilkes Booth for the whole escape and surrendered when Booth was cornered.
David Herold, born in Maryland in 1842, was a pharmacy clerk who knew southern Maryland well; John Surratt, a Confederate courier (a messenger for the Southern side in the Civil War), introduced him in December 1864 to John Wilkes Booth, the actor who shot President Abraham Lincoln [1].
He joined Booth's plan to kidnap Lincoln. On 14 April 1865 he guided Lewis Powell, a fellow plotter whom Booth had sent to kill Secretary of State William Seward, to Seward's house, then rode off with Booth. A military court (a panel of officers of the Union Army, the army of the United States side in the Civil War, acting as judge and jury) found him guilty of conspiracy to murder, and he was hanged on 7 July 1865.
While Powell was inside attacking Seward, Herold heard the screams and fled without him. He caught up with Booth after Booth crossed a bridge out of Washington. The two stopped at the house of Dr. Samuel Mudd, who set Booth's broken leg, hid in a swamp from 16 to 21 April, crossed the Potomac River into Virginia, and were cornered in a tobacco barn at the Garrett Farm on 26 April, where Herold gave up at once. His lawyer, Frederick Stone, called him a dim-witted coward who only acted as a guide.
He was with Booth when soldiers surrounded the barn, and of the two he was the one taken alive; Booth was shot and died about two hours later.
[Report #200] WHO. 'David Edgar Herold was born on 16 June 1842 in Maryland.' (
history.army.mil) He 'received a certificate of pharmacy in 1860 and began working as a pharmacist’s assistant and clerk for a doctor.' (
history.army.mil) 'In December 1864, Surratt introduced Herold to John Wilkes Booth, and Herold became a conspirator in the plot to kidnap President Lincoln.' (
history.army.mil) 'Herold, a pharmacy worker, had access to chloroform that might be useful in subduing the president.' (
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14 APRIL 1865. 'Because Powell was from the South and did not know his way around the District, he was guided by David Herold, who was from the area.' (
history.army.mil) 'Meanwhile, outside, hearing the screams coming from the window, Herold fled the scene, deciding not to wait for Powell.' (
history.army.mil) 'Herold crossed the bridge soon afterward, linking up with Booth near Soper’s Hill.' (
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FLIGHT AND CAPTURE. 'In the early morning of 15 April, the two conspirators reached the home of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd near Bryantown, Maryland.' (
history.army.mil) 'Booth and Herold stayed hidden in the swamp during the period of 16–21 April, before crossing the Potomac River in a boat procured by Jones.' (
history.army.mil) At the Surratt tavern, Bryan: 'Davy Herold took a drink out to Booth, and got from the befuddled and sleepy Lloyd one carbine and the package.' (
archive.org) A reward was offered for 'David Herold ($25,000)' (
history.army.mil). At the Garrett Farm on 26 April, 'Herold immediately surrendered, but Booth did not.' (
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THE TRIAL. 'In the end, only eight individuals would stand trial as apprehended conspirators, accused of conspiracy to murder Lincoln, Johnson, Seward, and Grant.' (
history.army.mil) 'The trial began 10 May 1865, three weeks after Lincoln’s assassination, and ended on 30 June.' (
history.army.mil) Under its rules 'only a majority vote was needed to gain a conviction, although a two-thirds vote was necessary to give the death penalty' (
history.army.mil). 'David Herold’s attorney, Frederick Stone, portrayed him as a dimwitted coward who merely accompanied Powell and Booth as a guide.' (
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VERDICT AND SENTENCE. 'The commission found Atzerodt, Herold, Powell, and Surratt guilty of conspiracy to commit murder and sentenced them to hang until dead.' (
history.army.mil) 'the four conspirators—Atzerodt, Herold, Powell, and Surratt—were hanged at the Old Arsenal Penitentiary.' (
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HELD. 'Uncertainties remain over the veracity of the evidence, the witness statements, and the degree of guilt of those who were tried by the commission.' (
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THE OCTOBER 2026 RESEARCH REPORT SAID Herold was responsible for the "coordination" of the escape; its source says Powell, 'aided by Herold' (
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