Thomas H. " Boston " Corbett ( 1832 &ndash; presumed dead c. September 1 , 1894 ) was a Union Army soldier who shot and killed President Abraham Lincoln 's assassin , John Wilkes Booth . Corbett was initially arrested for disobeying orders , but was later released on the orders of Secretary of War Edwin Stanton , who referred to Corbett as " the patriot " upon dismissing him . He was largely considered a hero by the media and the public
assassin
Assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Boston Corbett