The Plot to Steal Lincoln's Body | The Roper | 2

American History Tellers

Wondery

Society & Culture, Kids & Family, History, Education For Kids

4.7 • 18.3K Ratings

🗓️ 16 February 2022

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

By 1876, criminal boss Big Jim Kennally was ready to put his Lincoln body-snatching plan into motion. But his gang of thieves needed one more member before they could attempt the heist.

Soon, they found their new recruit: a former horse thief from Wisconsin named Lewis Swegles. But what the gang didn’t know was that Swegles was a “roper” – an undercover informant, employed by Secret Service agent Patrick Tyrrell to bring down Kennally’s counterfeiting ring. When Swegles revealed the Lincoln plot to Tyrrell, the agent knew he had to act fast. First, however, he had to convince his bosses at the Secret Service that the far-fetched plot was real.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, Prime Members, you can listen to American History Tellers add free on Amazon Music,
0:05.6	download the app today.
0:10.0	Imagine us June 1876 in Springfield, Illinois.
0:22.9	You're a young woman alone on a street corner waiting for your brother to take you to dinner.
0:27.8	But he's late.
0:29.0	You're also a little irritated at the spot he picked to meet you, right next to a busy
0:32.8	dance hall in Saloon.
0:35.0	Several men are noticeably tipsy as they pass you on the sidewalk, coming and going from
0:39.3	the venue.
0:40.6	And sure enough, just as you feared, one of them approaches you.
0:44.3	He's wearing a beat-up hat and reeks of whiskey.
0:48.3	After some fumbling, he manages to life cigar and stands there smoking and leering at you.
0:53.7	Hey, Pruduleity.
0:55.0	You clutch your handbag and turn away without answering.
0:58.8	He doesn't take the hint.
0:59.8	You waiting for someone?
1:01.2	Yes, my husband.
1:02.4	Oh, married, huh?
1:04.4	Yes.
1:05.4	And where's your ring?
1:07.0	He points to your hand and you hide your ringless fingers behind your back.
1:11.2	He roars with laughter.
	...

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