According to a popular urban myth, the phrase “your name is mud”, or “your name has been dragged through the mud”, originated with the scandalous story of Dr Samuel Mudd.
After assassinating President Abraham Lincoln, John Wilkes Booth fractured his left leg (fibula) while fleeing the crime scene. On his escape route, Booth visited Dr Mudd who dutifully reduced Booth’s fracture, set his leg, and provided the fugitive with a splint and crutches. The doctor’s curious delay in reporting the incident to authorities implicated him in a presidential assassination conspiracy. Dr Mudd was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; narrowly escaping the death penalty by a single vote!
Trouble followed Dr Mudd when an outbreak of yellow fever hit his prison in 1867. Once the prison doctor died in the epidemic, there was no alternative but to let Dr Mudd fill the vacant position. Dr Mudd’s efforts helped stem the spread of yellow fever at Fort Jefferson and saved many lives. The soldiers in the fort signed a petition, public opinion of the doctor softened, and Dr Mudd was granted a presidential pardon in 1869.
Despite those valiant attempts to redeem his good name, the doctor’s name would always remain Mudd. His conviction was never overturned.
Head Over Heals 