The Washington times., 1912-10-19
F0RDs THEATER
MAY BE RAzED
BY TAFT'S ORDER
Report of Efficiency Com
mission Is Expected
" Shortly. -
STIRRING EVENTS
IN ITS HISTORY
Assassination Of Lincoln and Other
Tragedies Have Taken
Place There.

When President Taft receives and
approves the report Of the Efficiency
apd Economy Commission, Il will be
matter OF but . few weeks until
Ford's Theatcr the building In which
President Lincoln was assassinated
snd one Of Washington's most histor-
ic landmarks, will be ra.ed or so en-
ureiy remodeled as to offer but
little reminder Of the famous. old
structure. - ..
The contents OF the commissions
report have not been made public in
detail. but 1t Is admitted that the re-
port says the building is unssnitar
without proper ventilation and to a
degree unsafe, II IL believed the re-
port advocates destruction OF the old
structure and erection OF now one
In its stead.
Those who are fond Of believing in
fate's presence in certain buildings,
will md ample ground for their sus-
plcion when they read the story Of this
old landmark. At least twenty.thres
persons have met tragic deaths within
its walls. and many more have received
serious injuries.
" Built As Church.
~iHo nIst uuuuinB eTeCteQ on inc
Tenth street site was in 1893 and was q
church edifce. known as the First Bap-
tist Church. It remained a church dur
Ing the frst twenty-eight years OF it's
existence, and on December 10. 1861, was
sold to David w. Heath. who resoid It
In the same month to John T. Ford.
With the erection OF stage after
slight alterations. the church edifse
was transformed into q concert hall,
and the first performance was by the
Cariotta Patti Concert Troupe, who
gave two performances. one on Novem-
Der 10, and the other two days later. In
these concerts the great prima donna
famous artists.
The next attraction was q troupe in
ferior to the .first, from an artistic
standpoint, but evidently more. popular,
as they held the boards from December
8 1851, to January. Is. 1852. 1t was
George sChristy's Minstrels, and for a
time the building was known as George.
christy's New York Opera House.
Ford remodelied the structure. trans
forming It from concert hall into a
theater. adding wider stage, new
seenery and other sorhewhat extensive
opened on March 10. isss. under the
name Of "Ford's Athenaeum." The
play was The French Spy," with Luz
ellie Western in the leading role. Fol-
supported by John McCulioukh and
other eminent actors of the day, in a
repertoire of Shakespeare and other
masters. and the company enjoyed a
run Of many weeks.
and he was folloYed by other noted
stars of the day.
'.- Burned to Ground.
The first Of the series Of tragedies of
accidents In the Tenth street building
came on December 30. 1862, when a fire
broke out during q matinee perform
ance. A near panic followed, in which
several persons were injured, but none
OF them seriously. In spite Of the ef-
forts OF the fire department, the build
Ing was burned to the ground.
"A. new building. the walls Of which
etill stand, was erected as quickly as
Possible and was opened In August,
!@s. with the performance OF the
Naiad Queeh." Following this came
Maggie Mitchell. Stuart Robson, and
many other noted stars. but It Is be-
the stage who was present the night
Lincoln was shot, He is J. w. Fergu-
sen, who appeared in local theater
last winter in The Deep Purple" and
He was a caliboy in the old theater and
rang down the curtain when John
Wilkes Booth fired the fatal shot.
The performance at which the murder
occurred was the last ever presented In
Ford's Theater. The Government seized
the property at once. guarding It at all
possible exits and refusing to allow
any, further performances. After few
weeks the property was purchased by
the Government from Mr.. Ford, the
price being 100000
..--.. Used As Office.
The building was remodeled and be-
came the office OF the Surgeon General
Of the War Department! The Army
Medical Museum was also stationed
there. and It is a peculiar coincidence
that In the exhibition OF wounds and
diseases In the museum there were
three cervical vertebrae OF John Wilkes
Booth. showing the wound from the
bullet Of Boston Corbett that ended the
assassin's life.
The building continued to be used az
part OF the War Department for sew
eral years and was at length turned
over to Its present use of housing the
hies OF the Adqutant Generals depart
ment
1t was during that period after the
shock OF the Presidents aSsa ssination
had passed away, and before history
had made the structure famous, that
another great tragedy" occurred, ON
June g. 1898. three floors collapsed, car
rying twenty-five Government clerks to
their death and seriously injuring many
others. The building was repaired as
dent of 1898 no catastrophy has hap
pened there. The recent .condemnatio
Inv the Efficiency and Economy Com
mittee adds new chapter to Its his