What type of pistol did John Wilkes Booth use to assassinate Abraham Lincoln?

John Wilkes Booth used a .44 caliber derringer pistol to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. The compact, single-shot handgun was fired at Lincoln from close range at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865.

The pistol was a percussion firearm made by Henry Deringer of Philadelphia. Its small size made it easy for Booth to conceal, but its .44 caliber ball was powerful at short distance. Booth entered the presidential box during the third act of Our American Cousin, approached Lincoln from behind, and fired into the back of his head at approximately 10:15 p.m.

The weapon was only one part of Booth's equipment that night. He also carried a large dagger, which he used to slash Major Henry Rathbone after Rathbone attempted to stop him. Booth dropped the derringer in the box, escaped by leaping to the stage, and fled Washington on horseback. The gun was later recovered and preserved as one of the most infamous artifacts in American history.