A Dress Stained With History

Illustration by Venango Museum Staff.

Bringing Abraham Lincoln's Final Night To Northwestern Pennsylvania

Years after Lincoln’s assassination, Laura Keene brought a macabre piece of national history to Northwestern Pennsylvania. Her tour through the region, accompanied by the exhibition of her bloodstained dress, transformed local theatres into spaces of memory, curiosity, and reflection.

This article draws on contemporary newspaper accounts, museum collections, and historical scholarship to document Laura Keene’s career and her appearances in Northwestern Pennsylvania.

Laura Keene, a British-born actress and theatre manager, is closely linked to one of America’s most tragic events. On April 14, 1865, she was performing in Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C., when President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. What happened that night changed her reputation and shaped her later career, including a notable tour through Northwestern Pennsylvania.

That night, Keene began her performance as usual, unaware that President and Mrs. Lincoln were watching from a private box above the stage. When a gunshot rang out during the third act, chaos broke out in the theatre. The National Park Service notes that while some stories say Laura Keene rushed to Lincoln's box to comfort him, others do not confirm she was there. Regardless, as the legend goes, it is stated that as Lincoln was carried away, his blood stained Keene’s dress, making it a lasting and somber piece of history.

After the assassination, Keene’s bloodstained dress drew significant attention and was considered a valuable relic. Newspapers described it in detail and reported that showman P. T. Barnum tried to buy the dress for several thousand dollars but failed. Reports from the time say Keene kept the dress and later took it on tour with her.

By 1873, Keene was performing throughout western Pennsylvania, including stops in the Oil Region. During the oil boom, the region's towns became busy cultural centers that attracted famous performers. On her tour, Keene displayed her bloodstained dress in the theatre lobbies where she performed. People came not only to see her act but also to view a real reminder of Abraham Lincoln’s final moments.

Keene’s visits to Northwestern Pennsylvania drew a lot of attention. During her stops, she not only performed but also displayed the dress as a historical relic rather than just a stage prop. For many people in the region who had lived through the Civil War, seeing an item linked to Lincoln’s assassination was deeply moving.

Keene’s decision to display the dress matched the era’s interest in relics and the practical needs of touring theatre after the war. The region's industrial wealth made it an attractive stop for performers, and its residents wanted events that connected them to national history. Keene’s tour shows how this corner of Pennsylvania, though far from Washington, D.C., became part of the larger story of Lincoln’s death.

Today, the dress is no longer complete. Pieces of it are kept in museums around the world, including the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum and the National Museum of American History. Still, its connection to the region remains, showing how national history can link to local places in unexpected ways.

Laura Keene’s time in northwestern Pennsylvania shows that this region was more than just an industrial center. It was also a place, in both fact and spirit, where some of the most important stories of 19th-century America happened.

Sources

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. “Laura Keene Dress Fragments.” Springfield, Illinois, n.d.

Goodrich, Thomas. The Darkest Dawn: Lincoln, Booth, and the Great American Tragedy. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2005.

National Museum of American History. “Bloodstained Dress Worn by Actress Laura Keene.” Smithsonian Institution, n.d.

Philadelphia Daily Evening Bulletin. Coverage of Laura Keene and the bloodstained dress, 1865.

Swanson, James L. Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln’s Killer. New York: HarperCollins, 2006.

Waugh, John C. Reenacting the Lincoln Assassination. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1994.