I read Conrad’s 1892 autobiography “A Confederate Spy: A Story of the Civil War,” in order to get a sense of his activities during the Civil War. It is possible that Conrad may have confabulated or exaggerated certain aspects of his work in the Confederate Secret Service in order to make money gain attention. Therefore, it is impossible to treat his claims as fact. I will attempt to find more reliable primary sources that can definitively confirm or debunk his claims before I use them in my research.
The book deals exclusivly with his activities during the Civil War, and his life before and after the conflict is scarcely mentioned. Conrad tells the story of his wartime service chronologically beginning in the spring of 1861, and ending with the capture and 1865 trials of John Wilkes Booth’s accomplices in the assassination of President Lincoln. Although he almost exclusivly writes about his personal experiences as a secret agent, he references major events such as the Lincoln assassination. He speculates that Booth was not killed after assassinating Lincoln and the United States Department of War covered up the truth (p.99). Conrad’s claims are difficult to confirm or debunk because he declines to name many of the individuals he collaborated with during the war. In Chapter I he states that in the spring of 1861 he left his position as a schoolmaster in Georgetown to serve as a chaplain and scout for Confederate General J.E.B. Stuart. He contends in the same chapter that in 1861, he planned to assassinate Union General Winfield Scott (p.7). This plan was aborted when he was informed that “Richmond peremptorily forbade such action” (p.8). In Chapter IV, he tells the story of an alleged 1862 conference between Confederate officials and British diplomats. He claims this meeting was infiltrated by a Union spy, Col. William P. Wood (p.22-24).
In Chapter V, he tells how he convinced a friend working in the Union War Department to give him a copy of a sensitive document, and claims to have received it at the department headquarters in Washington (p.31-32). He claims in Chapter IX that this same individual later gave him “a letter of introduction from a staff officer…as an army chaplain,” which he used to gain access to Union General Ambrose Burnside’s camp (p.59). This led me to wonder whether there were a significant number of Confederate sympathizers in the Union military and government who acted as moles for the Confederacy. Considering Washington D.C.’s proximity to Virginia, this is a likely scenario.
Chapter XIII is entirely devoted to the attmpted abduction of President Lincoln. He claims that throughout the war, “schemes for capturing Mr. Lincoln and taking him to Richmond as a prisoner had been planned more than once,” but “an open attempt was never made” (p.69). Conrad indicates that the kidnapping was planned by Conrad, Daniel Mountjoy Cloud, and several other Confederate Secret Service agents, and Confederate Secretary of War James Seddon, who was initially opposed to the plot, ultimately approved it (p.70). He tells the story of how he and his accomplices monitored Lincoln for several weeks before they attempted to ambush his carriage and abduct him (p.70). Conrad claims that Lincoln was escorted the federal cavalry on the day they were scheduled to carry out the plot, which was aborted as a result (p.71).
Conrad never mentions that he knew Cloud before the war, but he states that “a college mate, who now sleeps beneath the sod of the Mississippi Valley and myself, were among the few perhaps, who not only scouted within our lines, but were frequently sent by President Davis and our general officers within the limits of the Union capital” (p.5). This quote most likely refers to Cloud, as he died in 1871 in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
If Conrad’s claims can be corroborated by primary sources such as letters or diaries by officials in the Confederate Army or Department of War, they would be a fitting addition to a tour guide’s discussion of Cloud and Conrad at East College. The story of their plot to abduct President Lincoln would be especially fitting for this venue if it could be substantiated. I will attempt to locate the papers of Confederate Secretary of War Seddon, Cloud and Conrad, as well as other officers mentioned in the autobiography. I will also attempt to access the records of the Confederate Department of War.
Bibliography:
Conrad, Thomas Nelson. A Confederate Spy. New York: J.S. Ogilive Publishing Company Company, of Rose Street, 1892.
Well written post, but it would help to provide page numbers (especially for the quotations and also a more clear-cut summary of the scope and organization of the memoir. An image of the title page would also be a nice addition if time allows.
You’ll want to compare the 1892 book, “A Confederate Spy” (which is pictured above, but is not the book cited) with the later (1904) “The Rebel Scout,” published the year before his death and illustrated above, noting differences. You might also scan the references in Tidwell, Hall and Gaddy, “COME RETRIBUTION: The Confederate Secret Service and the Assassination of Lincoln” (1988).
Conrad Christian ethics prompted him to write book as an obligation to history, he is not lying. You are confused by his flamboyant 19th century style. This is purposeful, and not the senile ramblings of an old man. Remember you are reading the work of a master spy, An expert at slight of hand and misdirection. He told us as much as he could without leaving all the survivors of the CSA secret service subject to murder charges. Read the poems, follow the thoughts and sequence of ideas. He is telling us Colonel Baker and VP Johnson were involved, since Johnson was never a target. Azerots job was to hold the horse and lead them over the Potomac, Like Herrods job was to hold Powells horse and lead them overland. it was two, 2 man hit teams, after two targets. How do I know? he is telling us to follow the horses, I did. but I am a professional horseman and I understand what he is saying. The horse will lead you to the truth.