Ford, John Thompson, 1829-1894

Theater executive and dramatist.

From the description of John Thompson Ford papers, 1809-1960 (bulk 1850-1894). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 71132530

Theater manager, Baltimore, Maryland, Washington, D.C., Alexandria and Richmond, Virginia.

Managed Ford's Theater, Washington, D.C., when Abraham Lincoln was assassinated there.

From the description of Letter : Baltimore, [Md. to J.B.] Wright, 1863 Dec. 20. (Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library). WorldCat record id: 30607637

Biographical Note

• 1829, Apr. 16: Born, Baltimore, Md.
• 1849: Married Edith Branch Andrews
• 1851 - 1854 : Agent for the Nightingale Serenaders, a minstrel troupe Correspondent for the Baltimore Clipper
• 1854 - 1855 : Formed a partnership with George Kunkel and Thomas Moxley in leasing the Holliday Street Theatre, Baltimore, Md.
• 1856 - 1861 : In partnership with George Kunkel and Thomas Moxley, managed Marshall Theatre, Richmond, Va.
• 1858: Elected to First Branch City Council from the fourteenth district, Baltimore, Md.
• circa 1861: Became sole manager of the Holliday Street Theatre, Baltimore, Md.
• 1862: Built Ford's Athenaeum, Washington, D.C.
• 1863: After Ford's Athenaeum burned down, rebuilt it as Ford's New Theatre (later called Ford's Theatre), Washington, D.C.
• 1865: Incarcerated from April 18-May 27, following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, Washington, D.C.
• 1867: Ran unsuccessfully for mayor of Baltimore, Md.
• 1870: Purchased the Holliday Street Theatre, Baltimore, Md. Managed Academy of Music, Charleston, S.C. Elected to Second Branch City Council from the nineteenth and twentieth district, Baltimore, Md.
• 1871: Built Ford's Grand Opera House, Baltimore, Md.
• 1874: Elected to First Branch City Council from the nineteenth district, Baltimore, Md.
• 1878: Managed Broad Street Theatre, Philadelphia, Pa.
• 1894, Mar. 15: Died, Baltimore, Md.

From the guide to the John Thompson Ford Papers, 1809-1960, (bulk 1850-1894), (Manuscript Division Library of Congress)