Evening star., 1955-02-11
Ford's Theater Quiz
Stirs Pupils Interest
In Linco|n's S Death
Star stan Photos by Paul schmick.
By Harry Bocos

HundredS OF w a n n & t o n
school children this week visited
the scene of Lincolns assaSsina- =
ton, Ford's Theater at Tenth
and E streets NV.
A new program set up this
year by National Capital Parks
is using a quiz contest to bring
home the facts of the Civil War
Presidents life and death to
curious children.
Museum historians ask such
questions as who held John
Wilkes Booths horse in the alley
behind the theater?" and "Who
was the leading lady in the play
Lincoln was watching that
night?" The youngsters scurry
among the display cases to find
the answers.
Edward j. Kelly, superintend-
ent of National Capital Parks,
instituted the program this year
to make the Lincoln Museum
more popular to young visitors.
Last year. the museum had 150,-
900 visitors, while the Lincoln
Memorial had nearly 2 million.
Applications Increase.
Groups of children from the
fourth grade up are invited to
tour the museum two days a
week. So far, the number of
applications is more than dou-
BILE the number of groups who
have already gone through.
A typical group is Mrs. Roberta
Lentz' combined fifth and sixth
grade from John Quincy Adams
School, which made the tour re-
Gently. Mrs. Lentz, 80 boys and
girls and half-a-dozen parents
were met at the door by two
museum historians.
First they went upstairs to the
old second balcony for a 16-
minute color movie on Lincoln's
life.
The children laughed at the
strange picture of a Capitol
Building with half a dome. shown
as it looked in 1848 when Lincoln
was in Washington as a Con-
gresham from Illinois.
Then the historians took them
downstairs to the display cases.
They gave each student a ques-
ton on slip of paper and |
it would be a contest |
between the boys and girls for
the most correct answers.
Girls Take Lead.
After the first round, the girls
we're ahead. One boy couldn't
find who held Booths horse. A
girl who gave the name of Lin
coins Secretary of the Navy as .
Welles, however. was I
given credit for having the last
name right.
Boys and girls split evenly on
the second round. On the third
a historian asked who.
in three minutes, can tell me
the number of seats in Ford's
The group scattered among
the displays. In IS seconds,
Grace John had the answer
| .700-and the girls had won the
game.
Laughing and excited, the
children were taken into a dark
room for slide film of the as
They were quiet and thought
ful when they came out.
Booths Path Traced.
A historian then showed the
group how booth peered through
a peephole in the door Of Lin
coins box at the theater. He
traced on the floor tbe path the
assassin took as he entered the
oox, fired his single shot,
briefly with an Army
off1cer in the box, leaped down
20 the stage and fled to the
,lley in the rear. |
The tour took an hour and
half. When it was over Mrs.
Ientz took the children across
Tenth street to see the house
where Lincoln died.
The theater they left bears
title resemblance to the scene of
hat fatful April IA 1865. It's
nsides were ripped out a few
months after the tragedy to
make room for Government Of
ices.
1t may, however, be restored
D its original appearance. The
ast Congress instructed the In
erior Department to draw up
,lanS and estimates for the