I asked the New York Post’s longtime gossip columnist Cindy Adams to throw some limelight on Ogarita for her 150th birthday, and it was very amusing to find out that she did “do” her in her October 28th 2009 column. I can’t help but feel that a showbiz gossip column is exactly where Rita would have liked to be. Rosalie Booth met Izola when she came to see her newborn niece, Ogarita. They formed a friendship that would last their entire lifetime. Izola gave birth to Ogarita. John Wilkes Booth said Ogarita was his daughter. Ogarita said that Izola was her mother and John Wilkes Booth was her father. Father, Mother, and child all agree, there is no mystery here. Mixed within this grisly drama, we give a heavy spotlight to the story of Ogarita Booth Henderson, a resident of Glenwood Cemetery since 1892. Her story will be accorded and afforded the star power to out-shadow the stories of hallowed, forgotten, and neglected lands.

At the Globe theatre with the Boston Comic Opera Company is an actress whose name and family connection impart a great degree of interest in the general public. Her maiden name was Rita Booth but she is now the wife of Mr. Henderson, the director of the company. BoothieBarn biography of John Wilkes Booth's sister, Rosalie, contains information about Ogarita's mother's claims of Booth paternity. Rita’s husband, Al Henderson, must be assumed to be the one to make the funeral decisions. All the early notices bear his name — and so do the articles about them signing together for various gigs. He would have probably seen the notices of the show, in the 4 days it was supposed to be in town, and also the suddenly added 5th day with a matinee and evening show. Some of these would have been interesting to him as a person involved in the show and how it was advertised. The advertisement for Glenwood Cemetery was always only a few inches away from any mention of the Floy Crowell show. If he and a non-ill Rita looked at the adverts as they arrived in town, they would have had within their vision adverts for Glenwood Cemetery, never knowing they would soon need the services of such. And if they followed the papers, they would also have seen the roots of the eventual abandonment of the City Cemetery, argued not for the first, nor the last time in print, but squarely in their time in Binghamton. This is the story of how Izola (mother of Ogarita) had received a letter (circa 1st June 1865)from John Booth, about 6 weeks after Abe’s assassination. He asked her to meet him in Central Park (NYC) and she did; and both then went to Montreal. They spent only two weeks together there, awaiting his mail to arrive. ‘During this time he executed a Power of Attorney which gave powers to proceed with litigation in regard to some oil property he owned in western Pennsylvania.’ After this they parted and she never saw him again.The book provides un-deniable photographic evidence in the final chapter supporting all of the general and specific proofs relating to John Booth and the other kidnap cospirators; that confirms all of 22 chapters, including 70 illustrations including a full appendix from the witness statements in the trial of the conspirators; of which needs to be fully assessed along with the the whole and it’s not desired or required, at this juncture. A month later, on January 15 th, 1889, Rosalie Ann Booth, the eldest daughter of her beloved mother, passed away. Her death certificate states the chief cause of death was “bulbar paralysis” with “progressive spinal sclerosis” as a contributing factor. Her final illness lasted from January 7 th until her death on the 15 th at 10:00 p.m. Her body was transported from New York to Baltimore and a surprisingly well-documented funeral commenced: Forrester, Izola (1878-1944) This One Mad Act: The Unknown Story of John Wilkes Booth and his Family

Documentation and the recollections of Martha Lizola's granddaughter, which she included in a book, This One Mad Act, agree. Her parents were Abraham Standish and Izola Maria (Mendosa) Mills. Abraham was the owner and captain of a trading schooner in the China Trade. He met his wife in Spain. According to Martha's granddaughter, Izola Maria died giving birth to her only daughter on board ship off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, during a storm. Martha Lizola was primarily raised by her aunt, Abraham's sister, Fanny (Mills) D'Arcy. However, I must admit that it is pretty hard to get away from her implied claim that she had seen a deceased body at the morgue whom she believed was her real father and his name was John W. Booth, the famous actor. Eight days later, Mr. Lincoln wrote: “Body of adult–not identified (A clay pipe and rusty razor had been buried with this body.)” John was a matinee idol. Women adored him. After our marriage, he wanted women to continue thinking of him as an eligible bachelor. He told no one about our marriage. Women kept dreaming he would be their lover. John [Wilkes Booth] had one daughter Ogretia and one son Alonso. Ogretia was beautyfull. Alonso was very much like the old Mr Richard Booth. Johns wife is still living. her name was Izalia. I do not know her maiden name. John told Roslie he would give her two oil wells, and he wished her to take care of those two children, which she did, although they were with there Mother. Rosie calls them her Children. John was not married to there Mother. after Johns Death Izalia she went with the Children A way to the Ilenoiise. they the Children are both married now. poor Children… None of the family takes any account of John Wilks’ Children but Roslie. she is very kind to them: does not visit them, but sends them money every spring and fall. calls them her Children.”

Transcriptions of Asia Booth Clarke’s letters to Jean Anderson Sherwood, currently housed at the Maryland Historical Society, were provided courtesy of Art Loux and Ford’s Theatre NPS. In January of 1884, Mary Ann Booth fell at her and Rose’s shared home in New York. The accident resulted in a broken hip, the effects of which she would never recover. We’ve taken it standing up for many years,” Mr. Hulbert said of the complaints, “we don’t want to shirk any responsibility, but since the bodies were reburied the City of Binghamton never has paid a penny for their upkeep. For the price we received we hardly could be expected to maintain the plot.” The Rita Booth material that follows will be short on words for this reason. There just isn’t enough good information available. Her story will be interpreted here in the merest of nutshells. You will be soon bombarded with photographic depictions of articles related to her death in Binghamton, and you will see that none of them allow you to fully settle in to an understanding of her claim to be the daughter of Lincoln’s “assassinator.”