David Herold Character Analysis in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer

One of John Wilkes Booth’s most loyal co-conspirators, David Herold was knowledgeable about both the geography of Washington and of the surrounding countryside. He also had better skills as an outdoorsman than Booth, and Booth relied on his help during their twelve-day attempt to evade capture. On the night of Lincoln’s assassination, Herold was supposed to wait outside of the Seward mansion for Lewis Powell and then guide him to safety. Scared off by the cries for help of Fanny Seward and William Bell, Herold fled, leaving Powell to face the unfamiliar city on his own.

David Herold Quotes in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer

The Chasing Lincoln’s Killer quotes below are all either spoken by David Herold or refer to David Herold. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

News, Information, and Misinformation Theme Icon

Traveling light had served him well in the first part of his escape, but left him unprepared for this unanticipated phase of his journey. He left Washington wearing the equivalent of a modern-day business suit, unsuitable for camping out. Without a change of clothing, his garments quickly became dirty, ruining a key element of Booth's trademark, winning style—his beautifully dressed, well-groomed appearance. He and Herold could not bathe or wash clothes and, unshaven, they looked and smelled worse each day. They looked like the fugitives they were. Their looks might even jeopardize their ability to receive a proper reception at the fine Virginia households they planned to call on across the river.

Related Characters: ,

Page Number and Citation: 137

Explanation and Analysis:

Booth and Herold had been waiting in the pine thicket for days, and, without a bath or change of clothes, they had begun to look like fugitives. Booth had made few preparations for his escape. The crux of his plan was to move rapidly to the Deep South where he would be able to use his polished good looks, fame and dramatic charm to win the support and friendship of those he met. Without his good looks, this plan would only work if Booth’s persuasive powers were enough to overcome the prejudice his dirty appearance would inspire in the Southerners he would meet. This is another example of Booth’s background as an actor damaging his ability to make plans commensurate with the reality he was facing as a fugitive. Booth had thought his new life would be somewhat similar to his old one; he didn’t realize that, by dramatically changing the course of history, he was also making himself vulnerable to situations in which his old tricks wouldn’t work.

While Booth and Herold tarried, the government pursued them with new energy. The evidence gathered at Mudd’s farm, plus alleged sightings of the fugitives southwest of his farm, suggested that the assassins were making for Virginia. They knew Booth was lame, on crutches. They knew he had shaven off his mustache. Horse-mounted couriers and telegraph wires were alive all day with instructions to troops to enlist the help of fishermen and others on the river to capture the fugitives.

Related Characters: John Wilkes Booth, David Herold

Page Number and Citation: 150

Explanation and Analysis:

David Herold Character Timeline in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer

The timeline below shows where the character David Herold appears in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Planning, Conspiracy, and the Unexpected Theme Icon

...Wilkes Booth was in the crowd. He threatened to kill Lincoln to his companion David Herold and swore that that was the last speech Lincoln would ever give. On April 13,... (full context)

...help him murder Lincoln, Vice President Andrew Johnson, and Secretary of State William Seward. David Herold would accompany Lewis Powell to Seward’s home, where the Secretary was lying in bed recovering... (full context)

Outside the house, Lewis Powell and David Herold watched the street. They saw no guards and knew that Seward should be an easy... (full context)

...recovered and charged at Powell and they fought one another in a life-or-death struggle. David Herold heard Fanny screaming, took fright, and fled the scene, abandoning Powell to his fate. (full context)

Riding away from the scene of the Seward attack, David Herold regretted abandoning Powell, but was relieved to be safe and outside of suspicion for any... (full context)

...the wilderness and his leg injury was causing him pain. He planned to depend on Herold for aid. In the darkness, he struggled to find Soper’s Hill, the place he and... (full context)

Booth and Herold exchanged information. Herold knew nothing about Atzerodt’s mission, but he reported on how Powell’s trick... (full context)

Booth and Herold rode through open country towards their safe house at Mary Surratt’s inn. They had outrun... (full context)

Thirteen miles away, Booth and Herold arrived at the Surratts’ tavern. In 1864, after her husband’s loyalty to the Union was... (full context)

Booth and Herold reached an isolated farmhouse where Dr. Samuel Mudd lived. It was distant enough from Washington... (full context)

...that he would be condemned in the morning newspapers for his act. As Booth and Herold slept, a cavalry patrol rode from Washington in pursuit of the killer. (full context)

At Mudd’s farm, David Herold made casual conversation with the Mudds over breakfast. He gave no hint that he was... (full context)

Mudd and Herold rode into the nearby town of Bryantown, where Herold hoped to find a buggy or... (full context)

Back at the farm, Booth and Herold decided to trust that Mudd would not betray them. They waited for his return. Mudd... (full context)

Booth and Herold rode off, but despite Mudd’s directions they got lost. They ran into Oswell Swann, a... (full context)

Booth and Herold arrived at Cox’s home in the wee hours of the morning. Although it is unknown... (full context)

...do. The war, after all, was over. Jones decided he wanted to see Booth and Herold before he decided whether to risk his life again for the South. (full context)

Jones rode to the edge of the thicket and whistled the three notes. Herold stepped forward, aiming his gun at Jones and demanding to know who was there. Jones... (full context)

On Monday, April 17, Thomas Jones brought food and newspapers to where Booth and Herold hid in the thicket. He also carried corn with him; if he was stopped by... (full context)

...the familiar sound of cavalry horses. There was no time to escape. They were outnumbered, Herold had never been in a battle before, and Booth was injured, so there was no... (full context)

In the thicket, Thomas Jones told Booth and Herold that it was too dangerous for him to carry horse feed when he came to... (full context)

In the woods, Booth and Herold looked like the dirty, hunted fugitives that they were. They had planned to travel light... (full context)

...conspirators in captivity, Stanton issued a proclamation. He would pay $100,000 for Lincoln’s killers: Booth, Herold, and John Surratt. Posters with the men’s photographs and the amount of reward money went... (full context)

...assassins were spotted in a different county. Jones brought the news directly to Booth and Herold, telling them it was now time to attempt the river crossing. Jones led Herold and... (full context)

Jones returned to his farm, reassured to think that Booth and Herold would soon be in Virginia. He would never see the two men again. And little... (full context)

Herold relished being on the move again as he rowed on the Potomac River. Booth checked... (full context)

What Herold and Booth learned was not comforting. There were manhunters swarming the area. The reward offered... (full context)

Government forces were closing in on the fugitives. The knowledge that Booth and Herold had left from Mudd’s farm helped the manhunters narrow their search. It was also known... (full context)

On the night of April 22, Booth and Herold finally made the river crossing and stepped foot on Virginia soil. Herold left Booth by... (full context)

Booth and Herold rode to the house of Dr. Richard Stuart. Even though Mudd had sent them, Dr.... (full context)

Expelled from Dr. Stuart’s, Booth and Herold sought help and a place to stay at a nearby house owned by a man... (full context)

At that moment, Booth and Herold saw three soldiers. They got ready for a fight, but were soon reassured to see... (full context)

In Virginia, Willie Jett brought Booth and Herold to the farm owned by Richard Garrett. He presented Booth as a wounded Confederate soldier... (full context)

...farm, Booth enjoyed a pleasant evening with the Garretts and slept in a proper bed. Herold rode with Willie Jett and his two comrades, Ruggles and Bainbridge, into Bowling Green to... (full context)

...Garrett’s eleven-year-old son to run upstairs and get him his pistols. It was only David Herold returning from town, and no gun battle broke out. Booth’s reactions, however, had startled the... (full context)

Booth told Herold he wanted to spend another night at the Garretts’. Herold thought this was a mistake.... (full context)

...likely be there soon. Having delivered this warning, Ruggles and Bainbridge rode off. Booth and Herold ran and hid in the woods behind Garrett’s house. (full context)

...He ordered them to leave, saying he would help them find transportation, but Booth and Herold said they would not leave until the next morning. That night’s dinner was nothing like... (full context)

...to frighten him. Jett gave in: he agreed to show the soldiers where Booth and Herold were. (full context)

...of dogs and the clanking metal sounds of the horse riders woke Booth. He and Herold tried to escape the barn and were stunned to find themselves locked in. With Booth’s... (full context)

...that he give up the assassin’s location. Reluctantly, Garrett told the manhunters that Booth and Herold were in the tobacco barn. Baker then ordered John Garrett to enter the tobacco barn... (full context)

Booth spoke to the manhunters, buying time and refusing to leave the barn. Herold, on the other hand, wanted to turn himself in. In his mind, he was not... (full context)

...die for my country.” The soldiers brought Booth to the Garretts’ porch and tied David Herold to a tree nearby. He would have to watch, powerless, as his friend died. (full context)

Stanton put eight defendants on trial: Mary Surratt, Lewis Powell, David Herold, George Atzerodt, Samuel Arnold, Michael O’Laughlen, Edman Spangler and Samuel Mudd. Mudd was the only... (full context)

After a rapid trial in May and June, Mary Surratt, David Herold, George Atzerodt, and Lewis Powell received death warrants on July 6, 1865. They would be... (full context)

David Herold Character Analysis

David Herold Quotes in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer

Chapter 9 Quotes

Chapter 10 Quotes

David Herold Character Timeline in Chasing Lincoln’s Killer