John Wilkes Booth, the man who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln, was cornered by Union cavalry troops in a Virginia barn on April 26, 1865. Booth had been on the run since the night of the assassination, aided in his escape by conspirators and supporters of the Confederate cause. The Union Army initiated an extensive manhunt, deploying various means to seek Booth and his accomplice, David Herold. The cavalrymen traced Booth’s movements effectively and eventually located him near Port Royal, Virginia.

When the Union soldiers found Booth, they surrounded the barn in which he and Herold were hiding. A confrontation ensued, during which Booth and Herold refused to surrender. While the cavalry attempted to smoke them out, fire was set to the barn to encourage their exit. In the ensuing chaos, Booth was shot in the neck by Sergeant Boston Corbett, leaving him fatally wounded. As he lay dying, Booth was able to utter a few words, expressing his remorse before succumbing to his wounds.

The event marked a significant end to the manhunt, and Booth's death brought a measure of closure to the national trauma following Lincoln's assassination. It underscored the intense emotions and divisions in the country during the post-Civil War period, and Booth's death further fueled debates surrounding loyalty and treason within the context of the wartime struggles.