Edmund Spangler

Edman Spangler
Edmund Spangler after his arrest, 1865
Born	(1825-08-10)August 10, 1825 York, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Died	February 7, 1875(1875-02-07) (aged 49) Waldorf, Maryland, U.S.
Cause of death	Tuberculosis
Resting place	Saint Peters Cemetery
Nationality	American
Other names	Ned Spangler Edward Spangler Edman Spangler
Occupation	Carpenter, stagehand
Known for	Involvement in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln
Criminal charge	Conspiracy
Criminal penalty	6 years
Criminal status	Pardoned in March 1869
Spouse(s)	Mary Brasheare (m. 1858; d. 1864)
Partner(s)	John Wilkes Booth
Date apprehended	April 17, 1865
Imprisoned at	Fort Jefferson, Florida

Edmund "Ned" Spangler (August 10, 1825 – February 7, 1875) was an American carpenter and stagehand who was employed at Ford's Theatre at the time of President Abraham Lincoln's murder. He was convicted of conspiracy for his involvement in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln but was pardoned by President Andrew Johnson in March 1869.

Spangler was born in York, Pennsylvania, one of four sons of William Spangler, a county sheriff. Spangler's mother died when he was an infant. He was baptized as "Edmund Spangler" at the First Reformed Church in York on August 10, 1825. Throughout his life, Spangler went by several names; as an adult, friends and co-workers knew him as "Ned", after his arrest, he signed his statement as "Edman Spangler" while family records name him "Edmund/Edward".

While in his early 20s, Spangler trained as a carpenter. He eventually moved to Maryland and began working with another carpenter, James Johnson Gifford. In the early 1850s, Spangler and Gifford helped to construct Tudor Hall, the summer retreat for the Booth family. It was during this time that Spangler met future stage actor John Wilkes Booth who was then a child. In 1853, Spangler moved to Baltimore where he worked as an assistant to Gifford at the Front Street and Holliday Street Theaters. In 1858, Spangler married Mary Brasheare. In 1861, the couple relocated to Washington, D.C. where Spangler began working as a carpenter and scene shifter at Ford's Theatre. It was while working at Ford's Theatre that Spangler became reacquainted with John Wilkes Booth. By that time, Booth had become a renowned and popular stage actor. Spangler was dazzled by Booth's fame and charm and, despite the fact that Booth was thirteen years Spangler's junior, was always eager to complete whatever tasks Booth assigned him. Like Booth, Spangler opposed the abolition of slavery and considered himself a Secessionist. He would often butt heads with co-worker Jake Rittersbach who was a veteran of the Union Army.