Pinkerton's Great Detective
The Rough-and-Tumble Career of James McParland, America's Sherlock Holmes

For folks who imagine themselves interested in working for the Secret Service, Homeland Security, the FBI, or as a spy, this book can tell you a little about what it was like in the way back in America. You may find you don’t have the constitution for it after all. This book is subtitled “The Amazin......more

Before we had an FBI, the United States had the Pinkerton's Detective Agency, a private security agency that worked on behalf of members of the government (providing private security for President Abraham Lincoln), of various law enforcement efforts (particularly in hunting outlaws in the Wild West)......more

One of those well-researched works that really transports you back to the time and place where it is set.......more

Five-stars for the level of research that went into this book. If you're looking for an exciting read... this isn't it, but if you're looking for details on the Pinkerton's (report writing, operational details, and trials), then you'll love this. I appreciated that it neither vilified or heroized th......more

Some of the great parts of the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid come when Paul Newman turns to Robert Redford and asks, "Who are those guys?" That question eventually led Beau Riffenburgh to this biography of Pinkerton agent James McParland, who tracked the Hole in the Wall Gang and went unde......more