April 15, 1865, 8:14 P.M., 511 10th St NW, Washington, DC 20004, Fords Theatre.

A gun shot rings out.

“Last time I saw this it didn’t sound like that. I can’t believe how realistic it is,” said the middle-aged man on the fifth row to his wife.

A young daughter then asked her father,”Is that what it sounded like in the war, Daddy?”

He replied,”Yes, exactly.”

Even the security guard on the left entrance was astonished by how realistic it was after seeing the play many times before. It left him frozen until he realized it was not a piece of the action. It was real a real gun and it was real life. Trying his hardest not to run, he let the crowd know, “Everybody down. This is not a joke. Protect yourselves.”

***

It was a stormy night in the hills of Virginia. The skies were cracking and the thunder echoed across the plantation, but that didn’t stop the still-working negroes from hearing the cry of a newborn.

The new member of the Jones family was Don, Don Jones. He was born with bright blue eyes which he got from his mother Martha, and his parents could tell that the dark hair sprouting from his head came from his father Wilson. Wilson and Martha were beyond thankful to have their first boy. They had fought through the devastation of multiple miscarriages and now they were finally at peace.

Don was a one lucky kid. He had everything he needed as his family owned a large plantation. It was one of the biggest plantations in the South, and they needed all they help they could get. They had over 100 slaves, plus they had every extension of their family with them.

Don loved hanging out with his cousin Robert. At the age of 7, Don and he felt like they were all grown up, and they were now allowed to roam the plantation. They would examine the slaves working and sometimes pitch in just so they could get a quick bite of the corn. Most of all, Don and Robert loved to hang out at the Appomattox River which ran directly through their land, “A tributary of the James river”(Revolvy). They would hangout at the big creek for days at a time. They would swim, splash, and play with the creatures. Don never went a day without going to the creek. Because of his love for the Appomattox, he was given the nickname “Crick” by his father. From then on no one ever called him Don. The name was Crick, Crick Jones.

***

By the age of 15, Crick was all grown up. Standing at 6’2 and weighing about 190, no one scared Crick. He was now old enough to be a leader on the plantation. His father Wilson put him in charge of the Northwest part of the plantation, which was where the creek was. His job was to browse the area given to him and make sure every slave was on task. If a slave was lacking work ethic or slacking off, Crick was ordered to beat them with a stick until they had just enough strength to continue working on the crop.

After three years with the slaves, Crick could not get himself to hurt another one. He had grown attached to them as he spent ten hours a day watching them. One day, Crick caught young slave, Tom, sleeping on the Job. At 10 years old, Tom couldn’t survive such long work days, so he would hide in the corn and take short naps. When Crick went to whip him, he stared into Tom’s eyes and saw the hurt and came to realize he was human too. This changed him, and from then on he would treat the negroes just like he would White men.

After realizing what his family was doing to these humans, Crick didn’t confront his parents about the immortality they were committing. He would have been beaten if he did that. Instead, Crick heard about a peaceful North where the abolition of slavery was wanted. So all alone, not knowing where he would end up, Crick headed to the North in hopes of finding others against the same cause.

Crick’s family knew something was up. They hadn’t seen Crick all day, and he was usually the first one to wake up and greet everyone. Wilson more worried than ever set out on his race horse to find Crick, while Robert refused to search. Robert and Crick didn’t get along anymore because Robert would beat the life out of slaves. Crick didn’t believe in this and that is a main reason why he left. Even though Robert knew why Crick left he refused to tell Wilson because he would have been punished for killing multiple slaves. After searching for 2 months, Wilson lost hope in finding Crick. He gave up not knowing why Crick left.

***

“Hey son, step up here. Let’s see if you are fit for this,” yelled army general Ulysses Grant.

Crick with his tall and muscular stature stepped up to the desk. “What you here for, why you want to fight for the most achieved army in the Union?”

“I’m here to take down human beaters. Ain’t no man in this world should use another man as a slave.”

“I see we are both pursuing the same cause. You are in. We will make our way to Virginia in the morning.”

After a long night of prayer and stress, it was time to rally the troops. Crick was called to march in the front. They would place the new and untrained troops in the front as distractions and decoys. Also, these troops in the front were the most passionate troops. They were there to abolish slavery and fight for mankind.

Every man’s new cigarette burned out as the rain pummeled down on their way to Virginia. Cigarettes were the new big thing for men,”The first commercial cigarettes were made in 1865″ (Tobacco). Soaking wet, they kept marching and arrived at the Appomattox River just before the sun set. The plan was to wake up in the early a.m. and surprise attack the Union troops which were camped somewhere along the river.

Crick could not sleep that night knowing the next day could be his last. In fact, no troop could sleep. The Union army decided leave at  and make their way down the river. Twenty-five miles later they stopped to have a snack. In the middle of their break, they heard some scruffling of leaves. And next thing they knew, a whole army of Confederates is seen lined up on the opposite side of the Appomattox. The men quickly jump up and prepare their gear. Crick and the other unexperienced men are then pushed to the front. Without stopping and having a stare off, the Confederate men mysteriously run to the Union’s right and disappear.

Then the first gunshot rings out. The Confederates had made their way across a bridge and were charging towards them.

Crick, without hesitation, found cover behind an old beat-up wagon where he began taking out a large number of the charging troops. He started inching forward and forcing the enemy to fall back. The whole army was in awe at what Crick and his untrained squad was doing, including the Union. They were expecting a small Calvary not ready to fight. But with this courage came a consequence. Crick was hit! A bullet had gone through his left bicep. The pain was awful, but Crick fought through it and kept his push forward killing hundreds of running, scared men.

After they thought the Union had all fled, a man with a white flag comes out from behind a tree with a white flag raised above his head saying, “I surrender, no more, no more.” The Union General’s name was Robert Lee, which was Cricks cousin he had adventured with as a child.

Crick, with a bullet stuck in his arm, walked up to his cousin, grabbed him by the shoulder and said,”You the slave now.”

The pain from his arm was the worst pain he had felt, and later on Crick would have to amputate his arm, but no feeling in the world could top the feeling of victory that day. The word of Crick Don Jones’ heroism that day got out, and Crick was recognized and praised by everyone in the Union. They had won the war because of his bravery. Crick was even recognized by President Lincoln and was invited to sit with Lincoln during the famous Our American Cousin play later on in 1865.

***

April 15, 1865, 8:14 P.M., 511 10th St NW, Washington, DC 20004, Fords Theatre.

The chattering comes to a halt,”The six hundred theatregoers take their seats” (O’Reilly 214). The curtains open and the play has begun.

Crick Jones had been given the honor to sit by President Lincoln. Yes, they were intrigued by the play, but they were more intrigued about each other. Lincoln would ask about Crick’s life and his stories from the war, while Crick would ask about the life in the White House.

The talking eventually died down, and now they were more focused on the play. Crick then had felt the urge to pee since he had drank so much coffee that day, exhausted from all the attention.

Crick excused himself, got up out of the seat and made his way out of the room. Lincoln had reserved a room in the balcony for his family and close friends. So Crick opened the door and turned to his right, headed toward the bathroom. When he turned he saw a man pacing in circles with a gun in his right hand. Immediately realizing his intentions of killing the President, Crick threw himself at the man and wrestled him to the ground. With only one arm, he tried to pin him to the ground but the disadvantage was too much. The man pushed him off and stomped on his head, putting Crick in a daze. Without looking back, the unknown man sprinted to the door and fired a shot.

“Last time I saw this it didn’t sound like that. I can’t believe how realistic it is,” said the middle-aged man on the fifth row to his wife.

A young daughter then asked her father,”Is that what it sounded like in the war, Daddy?”

He replied,”Yes, exactly.”

Even the security guard on the left entrance was astonished by how realistic it was after seeing the play many times before. It left him frozen until he realized it was not a piece of the action. It was real a real gun and it was real life. Trying his hardest not to run he let the crowd know, “Everybody down. This is not a joke. Protect yourselves.”

Screams of terror filled the theatre, and a man from the balcony screamed,”Lincoln has been shot!”

Crick was now fully there after he had been nearly knocked out, and he knew Lincoln  had been critically wounded. He quickly made his way into the room where he had been shot. Lincoln now laying on the ground, barely able to talk motioned for Crick to come to his side.

With the little bit of strength Lincoln had, he mumbled to Crick saying, “Continue to serve your country as you have.”

Works Cited

“History of Tobacco.” History of Tobacco. n.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2017.

History.com Staff. “Abraham Lincoln’s Assassination.” History.com. A&E Television Networks,             2009. Web. 06 Apr. 2017.

Revolvy, LLC. “Appomattox River” on revolvy.com.”n.p., n.d. Web. 06 Apr. 2017.

“The Battle of Appomattox Court House Summary & Facts.” Civil War Trust.n.d. Web. 06 Apr.               2017.

“The Death of President Lincoln, 1865.” The Death of President Lincoln, 1865. n.p., n.d. Web.                06 Apr. 2017.

Bibliography

O’reilly, Bill. Killing Lincoln. Henry Holt and Company, 2011