All history proves that no one can hug a secret to his breast and live (...) This is especially noticeable in persons who have committed criminal acts." When a trusted employee is suspected of stealing from the Adams Express Company in Alabama, the organization reaches out to the Pinkertons, the world’s first private detective agency. Recounting true events, ‘The Expressman and the Detective’ (1874) tells a fascinating and suspenseful story of an investigation in which all that can prove a person’s guilt is a confession. Allan Pinkerton, the founder of the agency, assigned agents to shadow the suspect, others to gain his trust and he was among the first to hire a female detective. The London Times famously called him "a man at once deeply admirable and quite obnoxious." Allan J. Pinkerton (1819-1884) was a Scottish-American detective and founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. He recounted his first big investigation in ‘The Expressman and the Detective.’ A dedicated abolitionist, he offered his Illinois home as a stop on the Underground railway for escaping slaves.
This carefully edited Allan Pinkerton collection has been designed and formatted to the highest digital standards and adjusted for readability on all devices. Table of Contents: The Expressman and the Detective The Somnambulist and the Detective The Murderer and the Fortune Teller The Spiritualists and the Detectives Mississippi Outlaws and the Detectives Don Pedro and the Detectives Poisoner and the Detectives Bucholz and the Detectives The Burglar's Fate and the Detectives The Spy of the Rebellion
The Kent State University Press is excited to reissue these classic true crime detective stories by Allan Pinkerton, the Scottish American detective and spy who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. His agency was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power, and its well-known logo of a large, unblinking eye actually served as inspiration for the term "private eye." Detective Allan Pinkerton and his associates, including the indispensable Mr. Bangs, travel to Troyville, Pennsylvania--a beautiful village known for its rural beauty and community of farmers--to investigate the robbery of the Howard Express Company. The thieves made off with nearly $15,000 and vanished. Pinkerton learns that two suspicious men had arrived in town the morning before the robbery, and he races to track them down and discover their connection, if any, to the robbery. Meanwhile, in Oaklands, Indiana, the narrative follows Archibald MacDonald, a well-regarded member of his community who is noted for his good judgment, respected for his agricultural knowledge, and well known as an influence on local politics. A dedicated family man, MacDonald struggles to find the means to fund his children's higher education. As Pinkerton and his associates piece together the mystery, an important clue emerges: a torn envelope recovered from the robbery scene, with MacDonald's name and address on it. What is MacDonald's connection to the robbery? Is he one of the two men suspected of being involved? Could such an upstanding pillar of his community really be secretly involved in criminal activities? The crime described in A Double Life and the Detectives is less of a whodunit and more of a whydunit. As Pinkerton learns, societal pressure to keep up appearances and provide for family can have disastrous consequences, driving otherwise respectable people to commit brazen crimes.
The Kent State University Press is excited to reissue these classic true crime detective stories by Allan Pinkerton, the Scottish American detective and spy who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. His agency was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power, and its well-known logo of a large, unblinking eye actually served as inspiration for the term "private eye." In The Railroad Forger and the Detectives, real estate agent Thomas H. Cone vanishes suddenly. At the same time, the Pinkerton Detective Agency's Philadelphia branch, helmed by Mr. Linden, is hired by the Adams Express railroad company to investigate a draft forgery case. Two checks totaling more than $1,200 had been intercepted in the mail and falsely endorsed by none other than Mr. Thomas Cone! As the investigation heats up, Linden discovers that this crime is just the latest in a string of similar forgeries, which initially do not seem to be connected; the forgers are scattered across the country and seemingly have no relation to one another. Linden retraces Cone's whereabouts, beginning with his rented office space. The deserted office initially yields few clues until Linden spots Cone's blotting sheet. From a tangle of ink stains, Linden uncovers the address for a William R. Wales in Redrock, Ohio. Sensing a pattern, Linden is determined to find out if there is a gang of forgers, if William Wales is somehow involved, or if Cone has acted alone under a variety of aliases. A thrilling, fictionalized account of crime in the railroad business, The Railroad Forger and the Detectives is a tale of greed and an elaborate scheme--one only the Pinkerton Detective Agency can bring down.
The Kent State University Press is excited to reissue these classic true crime detective stories by Allan Pinkerton, the Scottish American detective and spy who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. His agency was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power, and its well-known logo of a large, unblinking eye actually served as inspiration for the term "private eye." In The Murderer and the Fortune Teller, Captain J. N. Sumner from Springfield, Massachusetts, hires Pinkerton to help solve a crime involving his sisters and the deed to a family farm. His younger sister Annie falls under the charms of a married man, Mr. Pattmore, who promises to marry Annie once his wife and her brother are out of the way. Captain Sumner possesses an opal ring with a stone that appears to foretell events. After suddenly falling violently ill, he becomes convinced his sister is trying to poison him to get his fortune and, more importantly, his ring. Recognizing Annie's superstitious nature, Pinkerton has one of his female detectives pose as a fortune teller to meet with Annie. But it soon becomes clear that Pinkerton may have gotten more than he bargained for. Is Annie actually trying to kill her brother, or is she being controlled by a much more sinister force? Is Captain Sumner's ring genuine? So unfolds this tale of adultery, politics, superstition, manipulation, and murder.
The Kent State University Press is excited to reissue these classic true crime detective stories by Allan Pinkerton, the Scottish American detective and spy who founded the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in 1850. His agency was the largest private law enforcement organization in the world at the height of its power, and its well-known logo of a large, unblinking eye actually served as inspiration for the term "private eye." In The Somnambulist and the Detective, Allan Pinkerton Pinkerton travels to Atkinson, Mississippi, to investigate the murder of bank teller George Gordon and the theft of more than $130,000 in the City Bank of Atkinson. Atkinson appears at first to be no more than a quiet town of shopkeepers, laborers, and businessmen. But dark secrets lurk beneath the town's Southern facade, and Pinkerton wastes no time in discovering them. Traveling under the guise of a cotton speculator, Pinkerton makes inquiries into the crime without drawing suspicion. Although George's body was discovered in the morning, he was in the habit of remaining in the bank after hours. And upon learning that George would never let anyone into the locked bank save "only one or two personal friends," Pinkerton is certain George must have known his killer! But without much hard evidence, the Scottish detective must use all of his cunning to deduce the identity of the murderous thief and extract a confession.
Kent State University Press / Black Squirrel Books
Published Date
ISBN 10
1606354159
ISBN 13
9781606354155
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