Pinkerton's Great Detective

September 9, 2013
This energetic biography sheds light on a master undercover operative for the famed Pinkerton’s Detective Agency. The iconic sleuth of his time, first hired by Pinkerton in 1873, McParland made his name (as well as the company’s) investigating the Molly Maguires, a secret society of Irishmen whose crimes terrorized the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad. McParland went on to become Pinkerton’s western superintendent and oversaw investigations into Butch Cassidy and the Western Federation of Miners. Though the idealized McParland would appear in the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Dashiell Hammett, the man himself proves far more flawed: he perjured himself to assure the sentencing of his victims, and often helped shrewd industrialists exploit an abused labor force. As a result, historians have both revered and lambasted him. Riffenburgh (Shackleton’s Forgotten Expedition) takes up the “conundrum” of McParland’s moral character and transforms legal and business records into a cinematic adventure through meticulous research. However, despite the momentum of the Molly Maguires’ narrative in the book’s first half, the episodes of detection from later in McParland’s career are disconnected. Despite these lags, Riffenburgh brings a forgotten rough-and-tumble world to life. Agent: George Lucas, Inkwell Management.

April 1, 2014

Riffenburgh (Encyclopedia of the Antarctic) presents a detailed account of a well-known member of the infamous Pinkerton National Detective Agency, James McParland. Based on archival sources and period newspaper accounts, this rich work moves beyond biography as it examines mid- to late 19th-century American ethnic, labor, law enforcement, and political history. An Irish immigrant, McParland first made a name for himself by infiltrating the secret society known as the Molly Maguires in the Pennsylvania anthracite coalfields. Following the Pinkerton company line that ends justify means, he manipulated miners into violent action to excuse intervention by law enforcement and the military. He rose through the company ranks to manage its operations in the western United States and oversaw the hunt for Butch Cassidy and the Wild Bunch. McParland also led anti-organization activities in Western mines and fought against the Western Federation of Mines. His exploits won praise in pro-business newspapers and harsh condemnation in the labor press. Reader Andrew Garman does an excellent job in presenting this story. VERDICT Listeners with an interest in American history will enjoy this terrific tale.--Stephen L. Hupp, West Virginia Univ. Parkersburg Lib.

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