Baltimore Plot

The Baltimore Plot concerned alleged conspiracies in February 1861 to assassinate President-elect of the United States Abraham Lincoln during a whistle-stop tour en route to his inauguration. Allan Pinkerton, founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, played a key role in managing Lincoln's security throughout the journey. Though scholars debate whether or not the threat was real, Lincoln and his advisors clearly believed that there was a threat and took actions to ensure his safe passage through Baltimore. He ultimately arrived secretly in Washington, D.C., on February 23, 1861. A planned train route through Bellaire, Ohio, to Wheeling, Virginia (now in West Virginia) and eastward was subsequently rerouted up through the Pittsburgh vicinity, through Pennsylvania, into Maryland, and eventually to Washington. He passed through Baltimore unnoticed, which proved controversial after newspapers revealed the seemingly cowardly decision. The incident and its significance have since been debated by scholars.