Lincoln's Ransom - Softcover

Champlin, Tim

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0753191261 ISBN 13: 9780753191262

Publisher: Isis Sagebrush Western Large Print, 2013

Synopsis

It was regarded by many as the crime of the century: on 4th July 1876, the corpse of President Abraham Lincoln was stolen from its mausoleum in Springfield, Illinois, and held for ransom. The thieves, signing themselves "The Coney Men", demanded from Governor Beveridge of Illinois the release of Ben Boyd, a counterfeiter serving time in Joliet, and $200,000 ransom money.
Of course, the theft of the body should never have succeeded. Sterling Packard, a U.S. Secret Service agent, had infiltrated the gang of counterfeiters, posing as a professional grave-robber. But, at the crucial moment, Packard was unable to provide a signal to prevent the crime. Following the theft, as a nationwide pursuit was launched, the train on which the body was being secretly transported is held up in Missouri by the James gang! Based on an actual historical occurrence.

About this title

About the Author

Champlin was born in North Dakota. He graduated from Middle Tennessee State College and earned a Masters degree in English from Peabody College, Nashville. He writes novels of the American West.

From Booklist

Veteran western author Champlin's latest effort is based on a real-life event. In 1876, a gang of counterfeiters led by one James Kinealy stole Abe Lincoln's remains from a Springfield, Illinois, mausoleum, hoping to trade the dead president for cash and a live engraver doing time in Joliet. One of Kinealy's fellow grave robbers is Sterling Packard, a secret-service agent planted to foil the audacious plot. Packard's trap fails, and a bizarre adventure ensues. In the course of moving the body, the baddies get involved with everyone from Thomas "Boston" Corbett, the itinerant preacher who shot and killed John Wilkes Booth, to Jesse James' gang. This is an entertaining romp for western fans young and old. Budd Arthur

Edition details

• Publisher: Isis Sagebrush Western Large Print
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0753191261
• ISBN 13: 9780753191262
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 320