Booth is photographed among spectators at Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address while Lincoln delivers his speech of reconciliation.

Booth and his conspirators plan to ambush Lincoln's carriage, but the kidnapping plot is never carried out.

A letter from Mary Todd Lincoln arrives at Ford's Theater announcing the President will attend that evening's performance.

Booth fires a single shot into the back of Lincoln's head in the presidential box at Ford's Theater.

Booth jumps from the presidential box to the stage, shouting 'Sic semper tyrannis!' before escaping through the theater.

Army surgeon Dr. Charles Leale enters the presidential box, examines the wound, and declares the injury fatal.

Lincoln is carried from the theater across the street and taken into the Petersen boardinghouse.

Secretary of War Stanton arrives at the Petersen boardinghouse, takes command, and organizes the manhunt for Booth.

President Lincoln dies from his wound, and Vice President Andrew Johnson is sworn in as the new President.

Lewis Powell is arrested at Mary Surratt's boarding house after appearing unexpectedly at the door with a pickaxe.

George Atzerodt is captured at Hartmann Richter's home and confesses the full details of the conspiracy to authorities.

Thomas Jones provides the fugitives with a fishing boat, and they eventually cross the Potomac River into Virginia.

Union soldiers corner Booth and Herold at Garrett's tobacco barn and set the structure on fire.

Sergeant Boston Corbett shoots Booth in the neck without orders, mortally wounding him.

Mary Surratt, David Herold, George Atzerodt, and Lewis Powell are executed by hanging at the Old Arsenal Penitentiary.

Booth's plot to assassinate President Lincoln culminates on Good Friday when he shoots Lincoln in the presidential box at Ford's Theater. While doctors struggle to save the mortally wounded president, Booth flees Washington and disappears into the Maryland countryside. Secretary of War Edwin Stanton takes command of the national crisis and launches a sweeping manhunt across the region. One by one the conspirators are caught—Powell is arrested at Surratt's boarding house and Atzerodt is found and confesses everything. Booth and Herold eventually cross the Potomac into Virginia with the help of a smuggler, but Union soldiers track them to a farm and corner them in a tobacco barn. After a standoff, Booth is shot and the surviving conspirators are brought to trial and executed.

The headline events of Lincoln's assassination and Booth's capture.

Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrenders to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, ending the Civil War.

Booth encounters theater owner Henry Ford on the street carrying American flags, confirming Lincoln's planned attendance that evening.

Booth visits Kirkwood House and leaves an enigmatic unsigned note at Vice President Andrew Johnson's residence.

Booth visits Mary Surratt and gives her a package to deliver to her tavern, where weapons are stored.

Booth meets with co-conspirators Powell, Herold, and Atzerodt at Herndon House Hotel to assign their assassination roles.

Lewis Powell gains entry to the Seward home by posing as a doctor's messenger delivering medicine.

Lewis Powell slashes Secretary Seward across the face with a large knife, leaving him permanently scarred.

George Atzerodt loses his nerve and abandons his assignment to kill Vice President Johnson, fleeing the hotel.

Booth reaches the Navy Yard bridge and is allowed to cross into Maryland by guard Silas Cobb.

Booth and Herold awaken tavern keeper John Lloyd at Surratt's tavern to collect binoculars and hidden weapons.

Dr. Mudd learns in Bryantown that Booth is wanted for the President's murder but returns home without alerting manhunters.

Ford's Theater is secured as a crime scene and photographed by prominent photographer Matthew Brady.

Confederate sympathizer Captain Samuel Cox hides the fugitives in a pine forest and summons smuggler Thomas Jones to assist them.

Detective Lafayette Baker determines the fugitives have crossed into Virginia and dispatches his cousin Luther to track them.

After Booth's death, reward money is distributed among the manhunters, with amounts varying based on each person's role.

The stage for Lincoln's assassination is set when the Civil War ends and Confederate sympathizer John Wilkes Booth turns his fury toward the President. On the day of the attack, Booth carefully prepares—confirming Lincoln's theater plans, briefing his conspirators at Herndon House Hotel, and securing weapons at Surratt's tavern. While Booth escapes across the Navy Yard bridge and Powell carries out a brutal knife attack on Secretary Seward, Atzerodt abandons his mission entirely. As Booth and Herold hide in Confederate-friendly Maryland, the investigation gathers momentum, with Stanton's forces securing the crime scene and chasing leads southward. Captain Cox and smuggler Thomas Jones extend the fugitives' flight by sheltering them and arranging their river crossing, but the net tightens as Lafayette Baker pinpoints their route into Virginia. The manhunt concludes with the distribution of reward money among the soldiers and detectives who helped bring the conspirators to justice.

The preparation, escape route, and investigative pursuit behind the assassination.

Booth stands in the crowd during Lincoln's impromptu White House speech and reportedly vows it will be Lincoln's last.

Booth selects a single-shot .44 caliber Deringer for the assassination, choosing dramatic effect over the practicality of a revolver.

Powell's pistol misfires when he attempts to shoot Frederick Seward, forcing him to use the gun itself as a bludgeon.

Major Rathbone grabs Booth's coat as he flees the box, throwing him off balance and causing him to injure his ankle.

Actress Laura Keene enters the presidential box and cradles Lincoln's dying head, permanently bloodstaining her dress.

David Herold abandons Lewis Powell during the chaos of the Seward attack and flees without waiting for him.

Without Herold as his guide, Lewis Powell becomes hopelessly lost in the city and is forced to hide in a tree.

Stanton discovers Booth's unsent letter to a newspaper in the early morning hours, revealing a wider Confederate conspiracy.

Booth arrives at Dr. Mudd's farm and conceals the assassination, presenting himself only as a man with a leg injury.

Dr. Mudd sends his cousin George to report Booth's visit to authorities, but the message is never delivered.

Booth discovers his explanatory article was never published and writes his justification for the assassination into a personal date book.

David Herold reveals Booth's true identity to three Confederate soldiers encountered at Port Conway, enlisting their help.

Richard Garrett locks Booth and Herold inside his tobacco barn overnight, suspecting them of planning to steal his horses.

Captured Confederate soldier Willie Jett agrees to lead Union soldiers directly to Booth's hiding place at the Garrett farm.

Booth is buried in an unmarked prison grave while Lincoln's body is honored with a grand national funeral procession.

The seeds of Lincoln's assassination are planted when Booth watches the President speak from a White House window and resolves that it will be his last public address. Critical decisions—choosing a dramatic single-shot pistol and Powell's near-catastrophic misfire against Frederick Seward—shape the chaotic outcome of the attacks. As Booth escapes, the conspiracy unravels: Herold abandons Powell, leaving him hopelessly lost, and Stanton's discovery of Booth's unsent letter cracks open the full scope of the plot. Booth hides his crime from Dr. Mudd, and a series of missed chances—an undelivered message, a burned article, a wrong turn on the river—prolong the chase without changing its outcome. Herold's decision to reveal Booth's identity to Confederate strangers at Port Conway brings them temporary help but hastens their exposure. In the end, a captured Confederate soldier betrays Booth's hiding place, a locked barn becomes his final stage, and his burial in an unmarked grave stands in sharp contrast to Lincoln's honored national funeral.

The key decisions, discoveries, and twists that shaped the assassination and manhunt.