Tudor Hall is the historic home of the Booth family of Harford County, Maryland. It was built in Bel Air between 1851-1852, intended to be the retirement home of tragedian Junius Brutus Booth and his family on the farm property that they had lived on for many years. Junius died in November of 1852 on his way back from California, never having lived in the house. After his death, Mary Ann Booth, moved her younger children into Tudor Hall full time and here the family lived for the next several years. A young John Wilkes Booth resided in the home as he tried his hand at running his family's farm. Also living in the house was Asia Booth, the chronicler of the Booths who would later write a book about her memories of her misguided brother during their childhood together.
Interestingly, one of the men who worked on the construction of Tudor Hall was carpenter Edman Spangler. Years later, Spangler worked at Ford's Theatre as a stagehand and was asked by John Wilkes Booth to hold his horse behind the theater on April 14, 1865. For this act and his friendship with Booth, Spangler was sentenced to 6 years in prison for the assassination of Lincoln.
After leaving the Booths hands, Tudor Hall was a private home for many years before being acquired by Harford County. It is now run as a museum about the Booth family. In 2009, a roof replacement project was undergone to help preserve the historic home. During that time, pieces of the original tin roof circa 1852 were removed. I received two pieces of the original tin roof from Tom Fink, president of the Junius Brutus Booth Society, as thanks for the many talks I have given at the home about the Booths. Up for auction is one (1) of those roof pieces. This piece of roof not only connects to the early years of the assassin of Lincoln, but also to his innocent conspirator who helped build the structure.
The piece measures approximately 8.5" x 6.5". It consists of hinged tin with green paint on one side. Please see below for lot images.
