{"product_id":"boston-corbetts-sailors-companion-prayer-book-presented-in-1868-fantastic","title":"Boston Corbett's \"Sailors Companion\" Prayer Book, Presented in 1868! Fantastic!","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"flex max-w-full flex-col gap-4 grow\"\u003e\u003cdiv data-message-author-role=\"assistant\" data-message-id=\"a36ba7c5-beb3-434c-8795-e1de12d61cd9\" data-turn-start-message=\"true\" dir=\"auto\" tabindex=\"0\" data-message-model-slug=\"gpt-5-6\" class=\"min-h-8 text-message relative flex w-full flex-col items-end gap-2 text-start break-words whitespace-normal outline-none keyboard-focused:focus-ring [.text-message+\u0026amp;]:mt-1\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"flex w-full flex-col gap-1 empty:hidden\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"markdown prose dark:prose-invert wrap-break-word w-full light markdown-new-styling\"\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"43\" data-end=\"268\" class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"43\" data-end=\"53\"\u003eTitle:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-start=\"53\" data-end=\"56\"\u003e\nBoston Corbett's 1863 Copy of \u003cem data-start=\"95\" data-end=\"119\"\u003eThe Sailor's Companion\u003c\/em\u003e - Presented to the Man Who Shot John Wilkes Booth by the New-York Port Society in 1868 - Remarkable Abraham Lincoln Assassination Association Book\u003cspan aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchor\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"270\" data-end=\"832\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"270\" data-end=\"286\"\u003eDescription:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-start=\"286\" data-end=\"289\"\u003e\nAn extraordinary Abraham Lincoln assassination association artifact: Boston Corbett's personal copy of \u003cem data-start=\"392\" data-end=\"416\"\u003eThe Sailor's Companion\u003c\/em\u003e, selected and arranged by J. K. Davis, Chaplain at Troy, New York, and published in New York by Robert Carter \u0026amp; Brothers, 580 Broadway, in 1863. The surviving presentation label affixed inside the front cover establishes a particularly important provenance and dates Corbett's receipt of the volume to less than three years after he shot and mortally wounded President Abraham Lincoln's assassin, John Wilkes Booth.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"834\" data-end=\"975\"\u003eThe book is bound in dark blue cloth with blind-stamped borders and gilt decoration and lettering to the spine. The title page reads in full:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"977\" data-end=\"1000\"\u003e\"THE SAILOR'S COMPANION\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1002\" data-end=\"1023\"\u003eSELECTED AND ARRANGED\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1025\" data-end=\"1027\"\u003eBY\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1029\" data-end=\"1069\"\u003eJ. K. DAVIS.\u003cbr\u003e\nCHAPLAIN AT TROY, NEW YORK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1071\" data-end=\"1126\"\u003eNEW YORK:\u003cbr\u003e\nROBERT CARTER \u0026amp; BROTHERS,\u003cbr\u003e\n580 BROADWAY\u003cbr\u003e\n1863.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1128\" data-end=\"1270\"\u003eOf exceptional importance is the original New-York Port Society presentation label pasted to the front endpaper. The manuscript portion reads:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1272\" data-end=\"1360\"\u003e\"Presented to\u003cbr data-start=\"1285\" data-end=\"1288\"\u003e\nMr. Boston Corbett\u003cbr data-start=\"1306\" data-end=\"1309\"\u003e\nby the\u003cbr data-start=\"1315\" data-end=\"1318\"\u003e\nNew-York Port Society.\u003cbr data-start=\"1340\" data-end=\"1343\"\u003e\nMarch 13th 1868.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"1362\" data-end=\"1630\"\u003eThe printed portion identifies Rev. Charles J. Jones as \"Pastor of the Mariners' Church,\" at the corner of Madison and Catharine Streets in New York. The label further explains that seamen were supplied with Holy Scriptures and other reading matter through the church. Above the label is an additional period handwritten inscription which appears to read \"Charles J. Jones, Pastor.\" \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"2321\" data-end=\"2707\"\u003eThe volume exhibits expected age and use, including rubbing and wear to the dark blue cloth binding, wear at the extremities and spine, toning and scattered staining to the interior, and wear around the hinges and endpapers. Importantly, the 1868 presentation label remains present and readily legible, preserving the feature that gives this volume its exceptional historical character.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"2709\" data-end=\"3163\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"2709\" data-end=\"2732\"\u003eHistorical Context:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-start=\"2732\" data-end=\"2735\"\u003e\nThe importance of this volume lies in the extraordinary identity of its recipient. Thomas P. \"Boston\" Corbett was the Union cavalryman who fired the shot that mortally wounded John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of President Abraham Lincoln. The Kansas Historical Society identifies Corbett as the \"Killer of John Wilkes Booth\" and notes that he became widely known as the \"Avenger of Lincoln.\" \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"3126\" data-content-reference-end=\"3145\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"3165\" data-end=\"3917\"\u003eAfter Booth shot Lincoln at Ford's Theatre on the evening of April 14, 1865, one of the most famous manhunts in American history followed. Corbett, then serving in the 16th New York Cavalry, became part of the military detachment pursuing Booth. In the early morning hours of April 26, the soldiers cornered Booth in a tobacco barn at Richard Garrett's farm in Virginia. When Booth refused to surrender, the barn was set ablaze. Corbett, watching Booth from outside, fired through an opening and struck him in the neck. Booth was removed from the barn and died several hours later. Lieutenant Edward P. Doherty subsequently singled Corbett out for his \"untiring\" efforts in bringing Lincoln's murderers to justice. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"3862\" data-content-reference-end=\"3881\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"3919\" data-end=\"4327\"\u003eCorbett himself viewed these events through an intensely religious lens. According to his later recollection preserved by the Kansas Historical Society, when Corbett and his fellow soldiers saw a flag at half-staff during the pursuit, they understood that Lincoln had died. Corbett's religious convictions were a defining element of his personality and military service. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"4254\" data-content-reference-end=\"4273\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"4329\" data-end=\"4824\"\u003eThat fact makes \u003cem data-start=\"4345\" data-end=\"4369\"\u003eThe Sailor's Companion\u003c\/em\u003e far more personally evocative than an ordinary book associated with Corbett. He was famously devoted to Scripture. Accounts of his Civil War service describe him reading Scripture to fellow soldiers and conducting prayer meetings, including during his imprisonment at Andersonville. His religious convictions were so pronounced that they became inseparable from contemporary descriptions of the man who killed Booth. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"4733\" data-content-reference-end=\"4753\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"4826\" data-end=\"5179\"\u003eThe book itself also predates the Lincoln assassination. Published in 1863, while the Civil War was still raging, it already existed when Lincoln was assassinated in April 1865. The surviving presentation label establishes that the New-York Port Society gave this copy to Boston Corbett on March 13, 1868, less than three years after the death of Booth.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"5181\" data-end=\"5842\"\u003eThe date creates a compelling post-assassination connection. By 1868, the name \"Boston Corbett\" was no longer that of an obscure soldier. It belonged to one of the most recognizable participants in the final chapter of the Lincoln assassination. Corbett had been publicly celebrated for his role in Booth's death and subsequently spoke about the episode. His postwar life remained strongly connected with religious activity and preaching. Historical accounts place him working as a hatter after the war while continuing his religious activities; by 1870 he was recorded in Camden, New Jersey, as both a preacher and hatter. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"5734\" data-content-reference-end=\"5767\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"5844\" data-end=\"6383\"\u003eThere is an additional and unusually appropriate connection between the book and Corbett's earlier life. J. K. Davis is identified on the title page as \"Chaplain at Troy, New York.\" Corbett had spent part of his youth and early working life in Troy, where he pursued the hatter's trade before the events that ultimately brought him into the Civil War and the Lincoln assassination story. The Kansas Historical Society independently confirms Corbett's connection to Troy and his work there as a hatter. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"6271\" data-content-reference-end=\"6290\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"6385\" data-end=\"6597\"\u003eThe unique book therefore brings together several distinct chapters of Corbett's life: Troy, his intense Christian faith, the Civil War era, and his postwar celebrity as the man who killed Lincoln's assassin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"6599\" data-end=\"7079\"\u003ePerhaps most importantly for a Lincoln collection, this artifact is not simply memorabilia concerning someone tangentially associated with the assassination. Corbett was physically present at the climactic conclusion of the Booth manhunt and personally fired the bullet that ended Booth's flight. His commander later praised his efforts, while Corbett himself interpreted the episode through the religious convictions that dominated his life. \u003cspan class=\"contents\" data-content-reference-start=\"6949\" data-content-reference-end=\"6981\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"7081\" data-end=\"7587\"\u003eThe religious nature of this particular artifact consequently has unusual biographical relevance. A period devotional book specifically presented to Boston Corbett in 1868 represents something considerably more personal than a later photograph, commemorative item, or generic relic bearing his name. It is an object intended for his own religious use during the immediate post-Civil War period, when Corbett was living in the aftermath of the event that permanently connected his name with Abraham Lincoln.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"7589\" data-end=\"7714\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"7589\" data-end=\"7624\"\u003eAuthentication \u0026amp; Encapsulation:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"7716\" data-end=\"8247\"\u003eThe principal provenance evidence is intrinsic to the book itself: the original New-York Port Society presentation label identifies \"Mr. Boston Corbett\" as the recipient and is manuscript dated \"March 13th 1868.\" The label further identifies Rev. Charles J. Jones, Pastor of the Mariners' Church in New York.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul data-start=\"8714\" data-end=\"8937\"\u003e\u003cli data-section-id=\"p0x1fz\" data-start=\"8714\" data-end=\"8937\"\u003e\n\u003cstrong data-start=\"8716\" data-end=\"8758\"\u003eAdditional Documentation \u0026amp; Provenance:\u003c\/strong\u003e \u003cem data-start=\"8759\" data-end=\"8935\"\u003eAt buyer's request, Historical Autographs Gallery will include an additional \"Historical Autographs Gallery Certificate\" signed by our company founder Luke Pascal at no cost.\u003c\/em\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"8939\" data-end=\"9925\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"8939\" data-end=\"8958\"\u003eClosing Appeal:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-start=\"8958\" data-end=\"8961\"\u003e\nFew personal artifacts could more effectively unite Boston Corbett's two defining historical identities: the deeply religious Union veteran and the soldier who brought John Wilkes Booth's flight to its fatal conclusion. Published during the Civil War in 1863 and specifically presented to \"Mr. Boston Corbett\" by the New-York Port Society on March 13, 1868, this devotional volume survives as an intimate artifact from the life of the man remembered as the \"Avenger of Lincoln.\" Its period presentation label, religious content, Civil War publication date, and direct association with Corbett create a remarkable convergence of Lincoln assassination history and personal provenance. For an advanced collection devoted to Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth, the assassination conspirators and pursuers, or important Civil War association books, this is an exceptionally evocative relic connected directly to the man whose shot ended the hunt for Lincoln's assassin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-start=\"9927\" data-end=\"10359\" data-is-last-node=\"\" data-is-only-node=\"\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-start=\"9927\" data-end=\"9947\"\u003eShipping Notice:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr data-start=\"9947\" data-end=\"9950\"\u003e\n\u003cem data-start=\"9950\" data-end=\"10359\" data-is-last-node=\"\"\u003eFor insurance purposes, items sold over $600 may require signature confirmation upon delivery. Higher-value items, likely over $1,500, are shipped via FedEx 2-Day with Direct Signature Confirmation. FedEx provides the most flexibility when requiring a signature, allowing you to make special delivery requests directly through their tracking system. This ensures both security and convenience for the buyer.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"z-0 flex min-h-[46px] justify-start\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"H.A.G.","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48121203425443,"sku":"EB-168678899632","price":6500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0672\/7509\/6227\/files\/57_31470e0f-a6ed-4c53-89d4-4d4ff01a88ba.jpg?v=1789327819","url":"https:\/\/historicalautographsgallery.com\/products\/boston-corbetts-sailors-companion-prayer-book-presented-in-1868-fantastic","provider":"H.A.G.","version":"1.0","type":"link"}