Booth's Escape
Booth's Escape is a State Scenic Byway in Maryland. Within Maryland it covers roughly 50 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Booth's Escape with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Booth's Escape is a 66-mile Maryland scenic byway retracing John Wilkes Booth's flight through Southern Maryland after he assassinated President Lincoln at Ford's Theatre on April 14, 1865. The route runs from the Washington, D.C. line to Popes Creek on the Potomac River, following the same roads Booth and accomplice David Herold used while eluding federal troops for nearly two weeks. Stops include Tudor Hall in Bel Air, Booth's childhood home; the Waldorf residence of Dr. Samuel A. Mudd, who set Booth's broken leg on April 15; Rich Hill in Bel Alton, where Confederate sympathizer Samuel Cox sheltered the fugitives on April 16; and the Zekiah Swamp Natural Environment Area near Brandywine, where the two hid in a pine thicket for four days before eventually crossing into Virginia. It's one of four Maryland Civil War Trails byways and a drive built almost entirely around a single, well-documented manhunt.
- 66 miles, Washington D.C. to Popes Creek
- Retraces John Wilkes Booth's 1865 escape route
- Tudor Hall, Booth's childhood home in Bel Air
- Dr. Samuel Mudd's home, Waldorf
- Rich Hill, Bel Alton
- Zekiah Swamp Natural Environment Area
Plan a drive on Booth's Escape →
What is a State Scenic Byway?
State Scenic Byways are roads a state has formally recognized for their scenic, natural, historic or cultural value — each state's own curated collection of drives worth taking slowly.
Where to Stay along Booth's Escape
1 campground or RV park sits within about 5 miles of Booth's Escape.
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