History Of The Private Investigator

Although exact history on the subject is vague, reports have it that the first known and recognized private investigator was a former soldier in the French army, a certain Mr. Eugene Francoise Vidocq. Eugene would best be described as a "bit of a character". According to information available, Eugene's criminal experience was initially gained on the "wrong side of the tracks." Although he was never actually incarcerated, he certainly skated on some very thin ice.

His knowledge of the French criminal fraternity and his many contacts lead to tremendous success for Eugene's enterprise, founded in 1833. His business developed dramatically and began to take on employees, most of whom were "ex-cons". Strongly backing up Eugene's theory that it takes one to know one!

Despite the fact that he had no real training on the subject, Eugene and his colleagues at the agency were responsible for some pretty serious breakthroughs and innovation in the field of private investigation. Some of their better known inventions were the use of plaster casts to measure and classify footprints.

There is no doubt, mostly to keep themselves out of prison by sending other people there, Vidocq and his band of merry men were the pioneers of the private investigators industry. And it could only go uphill from there.

It would take a number of years before private investigators would shake of the image of being police informants, or carry out some of the dirty work on their behalf. In the days before there were trade unions and workers enjoyed any rights, private detectives were employed by major companies to break up any attempts by workers to improve their conditions and their salaries. On both sides of the channel, private detectives virtually acted as mercenaries or strong arm men to impose the will of major business entities on their employees. In many cases, using excessive force and causing serious injuries and often fatalities.

It is possible to say that from their dubious beginnings, the concept of a private investigation agency began to gain some credibility was with the founding of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency in the United States in 1850. The founder, Alan Pinkerton, had become a well known, loved and respected figure when he succeeded in unearthing a plot to assassinate Abraham Lincoln, who was then President-Elect. In their early days, Pinkerton's men were not above carrying out some strike breaking on behalf of the major industrialist of their era. Andrew Carnegie was on of their biggest clients.

However to their credit, Pinkerton's agency were also responsible for taking on the task of clearing up the Wild West of the 1870's. Among those who were either sent to an early grave or banished from beyond the US borders were the Reno brothers, Jesse James and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. So afraid were Butch and Sundance of Pinkerton's men that they escaped to Bolivia, only to be gunned down in a showdown with the entire Bolivian army.

The twentieth century saw the general stability that law and order brings, and the private investigator began to gradually settle into a niche in the tapestry of American society. Challenges for the private investigator have changed to suit the times we live in. Since then the private detective industry has grown with the changing needs of the public and society. Today's private investigators are involved in a variety of issues and the industry has diversified to become more specialized. Private investigators deal with issue as varied as proving infidelity to discovering insurance fraud.

From its slightly comical beginnings in France almost 200 years ago, the history of the private investigator has taken a few twists and turns in order to arrive at where it sits today.