Port Tobacco in Charles County, Maryland — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)

Port Tobacco: Conspiracy & the Plot to Assassinate President Lincoln

Port Tobacco: Conspiracies & the Plot to Assassinate President Lincoln Marker image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, March 14, 2015

1. Port Tobacco: Conspiracies & the Plot to Assassinate President Lincoln Marker

Inscription.
Port Tobacco was the home and place of business of George Atzerodt. Although he failed to murder Vice President Andrew Johnson, he was convicted and executed for his role in the plot to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln.

Part of the plot—when it was supposed to be the abduction of the president to Richmond—was hatched in Port Tobacco, possibly at Atzerodt's carriage shop or his home (neither of which has yet been located), the Smoot Hotel, or at the St. Charles Hotel. Atzerodt testified that conspirators John Surratt and John Wilkes Booth came to Port Tobacco several times.

Local Union Army units scoured the countryside in search of the assassins for several hectic days in April 1865. Some of those units were stationed in and around Port Tobacco. Archaeological investigations at one nearby camp produced:
• discarded ammunition, • horseshoes, and • personal and uniform items belonging to the soldiers.

(captions)
Photograph of George Atzerodt who, between 1857 and 1861, worked with his brother in the Atzerodt Brothers Carriage Shop in Port Tobacco.

Robert Barbour's (1942) sketch map of Port Tobacco showing the Smoot Hotel and St. Charles Hotel.

Smoot Hotel, reputed Confederate

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rendezvous. It burned in 1883, the heat from which broke several windows in the courthouse nearby. From NRR.

Artifacts Unearthed
Above, Sharps .36 caliber bullets.
Above Right, Inkwell and cover from camp.
Right, Watch chain from camp.

The Port Tobacco Archaeological Project

The Society for the Restoration of Port Tobacco
• (301) 934-4313
• www.RestorePortTobacco.org

Erected by The Port Tobacco Archaeological Project, The Society for the Restoration of Port Tobacco, Charles County Maryland, Maryland Heritage Area.

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Booth's Escape, the Former U.S. Presidents: #16 Abraham Lincoln, and the Former U.S. Presidents: #17 Andrew Johnson series lists. A significant historical month for this entry is April 1865.

Location. 38° 30.667′ N, 77° 1.2′ W. Marker is in Port Tobacco, Maryland, in Charles County. Marker can be reached from Commerce Street west of Chapel Point Road when traveling west. Marker is located in front of the Port Tobacco Courthouse & Museum. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 8430 Commerce St, Port Tobacco MD 20677, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Port Tobacco: Commerce (here, next to this

Port Tobacco Courthouse exterior image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, March 14, 2015

2. Port Tobacco Courthouse exterior

marker); John Wilkes Booth (a few steps from this marker); Port Tobacco (a few steps from this marker); On to Yorktown (a few steps from this marker); Port Tobacco: A Maryland Mosaic (a few steps from this marker); St. Columba Masonic Lodge (within shouting distance of this marker); The Port Tobacco Jail (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Port Tobacco (approx. 0.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Port Tobacco.

Also see . . .
1. Port Tobacco Historic District. Maryland's National Register Properties website entry (Submitted on January 21, 2019.)

2. St. Charles Hotel. Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties website entry (Submitted on January 21, 2019.)

3. Smoot Hall. Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties website entry (Submitted on January 21, 2019.)

4. Booth's Escape Byway. Visit Maryland website entry (Submitted on January 21, 2019.)

5. Port Tobacco Historic District. Maryland's Maryland Inventory of Historic Properties website entry (Submitted on January 21, 2019, by David Lassman of Waldorf, Maryland.)

George Atzerodt, Conspirator in Lincoln Assassination image. Click for full size.

Library of Congress, circa 1860

3. George Atzerodt, Conspirator in Lincoln Assassination

Port Tobacco Village Signs Along Chapel Point Road. image. Click for full size.

National Park Service, Thomas Stone National Historic Site, July 15, 2017

4. Port Tobacco Village Signs Along Chapel Point Road.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 20, 2022. It was originally submitted on January 21, 2019, by David Lassman of Waldorf, Maryland. This page has been viewed 583 times since then and 42 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 21, 2019. 4. submitted on January 21, 2019, by David Lassman of Waldorf, Maryland. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.