Finis L. Bates

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Finis L. Bates
Bates c. 1907
Born	Finis Langdon Bates August 22, 1848 Itawamba County, Mississippi, U.S.
Died	November 29, 1923(1923-11-29) (aged 75) Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Resting place	Elmwood Cemetery, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.
Occupation	Lawyer
Subject	John Wilkes Booth
Notable works	Escape and Suicide of John Wilkes Booth (1907)
Spouse	Bertie Lee Money ​ ​ (m. 1869, died)​ Madge Young Doyle ​ ​ (m. 1890⁠–⁠1923)​
Children	4
Relatives	Kathy Bates (granddaughter)

Finis Langdon Bates (August 22, 1848 – November 29, 1923) was an American lawyer and author of The Escape and Suicide of John Wilkes Booth (1907). In this 309-page book, Bates claimed that John Wilkes Booth, the assassin of U.S. president Abraham Lincoln, was not killed by Union Army Soldiers on April 26, 1865, but successfully eluded capture altogether, and lived for many years thereafter under a series of assumed names, notably John St. Helen and David E. George.^[1]