Port Tobacco was the home and place of business of George Atzerodt, who failed to murder Vice President Andrew Johnson but was convicted and executed for his role in the plot to assassinate President Abraham Lincoln. When the conspiracy was still intended as an abduction of the president to Richmond, part of it was hatched in Port Tobacco, possibly at Atzerodt's carriage shop or home, the Smoot Hotel, or the St. Charles Hotel. Atzerodt testified that John Surratt and John Wilkes Booth came to Port Tobacco several times. In April 1865, local Union Army units, some stationed in and around Port Tobacco, scoured the countryside for several hectic days in search of the assassins, and archaeological investigations at one nearby camp produced discarded ammunition, horseshoes, and personal and uniform items belonging to the soldiers.