Enter to win a copy of

The Pinks:

The First Women Detectives, Operatives, and Spies with the Pinkerton National Detective Agency

An article in the May 14, 1893, edition of the New York Times categorized women as the “weaker, gentler sex whose special duty was the creation of an orderly and harmonious sphere for husbands and children. Respectable women, true women, do not participate in debates on the public issues or attract attention to themselves.” Kate Warne and the female operatives that served with her defied convention, and progressive men like Allan Pinkerton gave them an opportunity to prove themselves to be capable of more than caring for a home and family.

Kate’s daring and Pinkerton’s ingenuity paved the way for women to be accepted in the field of law enforcement. Prior to Kate being hired as an agent, there had been few that had been given a chance to serve as female officers in any capacity.

In the early 1840s, six females were given charge of women inmates at a prison in New York. Their appointments led to a handful of other ladies being allowed to patrol dance halls, skating rinks, pool halls, movie theaters, and other places of amusement frequented by women and children. Although the patrol women performed their duties admirably, local government officials and police departments were reluctant to issue them uniforms or allow them to carry weapons. The general consensus among men was that women lacked the physical stamina to maintain such a job for an extended period of time. An article in an 1859 edition of The Citizen newspaper announced that “Women are the fairer sex, unable to reason rationally or withstand trauma. They depend upon the protection of men.”

The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union played a key role in helping to change the stereotypical view of women at the time. The organization recognized the treatment female convicts suffered in prison and campaigned for women to be made in charge of female inmates. The WCTU’s efforts were successful. Prison matrons provided assistance and direction to female prisoners, thereby shielding them from possible abuse at the hands of male officers and inmates. Those matrons were the earliest predecessors of women law enforcement officers.

Aside from women hired specifically as police matrons, widows of slain police officers were sometimes given honorary positions within the department. Titles given to widows meant little at the time; they were, however, the first whispers of what would eventually lead to official positions for sworn police women.

Even with their limited duties, police matrons in the mid to late 1800s suffered a barrage of negative publicity. Most of the commentary scoffed at the women’s infiltration into the field. The press approached stories about police matrons and other women trying to force their way into the trade as “confused or cute” rather than a useful addition to the law enforcement community.

Allan Pinkerton’s decision to hire a female operative was all the more courageous given the public’s perception of women as law enforcement agents. Kate Warne had the foresight to know that she could be especially helpful in cases where male operatives needed to collect evidence from female suspects. She quickly proved to be a valuable asset, and Pinkerton hoped Hattie Lewis also known as Hattie Lawton would be as effective.* Hattie was hired in 1860 and was not only the second woman employed at the world famous detective agency, but some historians speculate was the first, mixed race woman as well.

To learn more about Hattie Lewis read The Pinks

Enter now to win a copy of

The Pinks: The First Female Detectives, Operatives and Spies of

the Pinkerton National Detective Agency

The person holding onto the tent pole has been mistaken as Kate Warne. No photo exists of Kate.

The depot of the Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad in Philadelphia was strangely bustling with an assortment of customers on the evening of February 22, 1861. Businessmen dressed in tailcoats, high-waisted trousers, and elaborate cravats milled about with laborers adorned in faded work pants, straw hats, and long dusters. Ladies wearing long, flouncy, bell-shaped dresses with small hats topped with ribbon streamers of blue, gold, and red mingled with women in plain brown skirts, white, leg-o- mutton sleeve blouses and shawls. Some of the women traveled in pairs conversing in low voices as they walked from one side of the track to the other. Most everyone carried carpet bags or leather valises with them.

The depot was the hub of activity; parent and child, railroad employees, and young men in military uniforms made their way with tickets in hand and destinations in mind. Among the travelers were those who were content to remain in one place either on a bench reading a paper or filling the wait time knitting. Some frequently checked their watches, and others drummed their fingers on the wooden armrests of their seats. There was an air of general anticipation. It was chilly and damp, and restless ticket holders studied the sky for rain. In the far distance, thunder could be heard rumbling.

At 10:50 in the evening, an engine and a few passenger cars pulled to a stop at the depot, and a conductor disembarked. The man was pristinely attired and neatly groomed. He removed a stopwatch from his pocket and cast a glance up and down the tracks before reading the time. The conductor made eye contact with a businessman standing near the ticket booth who nodded ever so slightly. The businessman adjusted the hat on his head and walked to the far end of the depot where a freight loader was pushing a cart full of luggage toward the train. The freight man eyed the businessman as he passed by, and the businessman turned and headed in the opposite direction. Something was about to happen, and the three individuals communicating in a minimal way were involved.

Three, well-built men in gray and black suits alighted from one of the cars as the freight man approached. One of the men exchanged pleasantries with the baggage handler as he lifted the suitcases onto the train, and the two other men took in the scene before them. Somewhere out of the shadows of their poorly lit platform, a somberly dressed, slender woman emerged. At first glance she appeared to be alone. She stood quietly waiting for the freight man to load the last piece of luggage. When he had completed the job and was returning to the ticket office, she walked briskly toward the train.

The woman’s hand and wrist were hooked in the arm of a tall man, dark and lanky, wrapped in a heavy, traveling shawl. He wore a broad-brimmed, felt hat low on his head and was careful to look down as he hurried along. When he and his escort reached the car, the woman presented her tickets to the conductor who arrived at the scene at the same time. “My invalid brother and I are attending a family party,” she volunteered. After examining the tickets for a moment, the conductor stepped aside to allow the pair to board. Protectively and tenderly, the woman took her brother’s arm and helped him to the stairs leading up the train. With an hint of reluctance, the lean, angular man climbed aboard.

The Pinks 5

I'm looking forward to hearing from you! Please fill out this form and I will get in touch with you if you are the winner.

Join my email news list to enter the giveaway.

"*" indicates required fields

Your Name

Your Email*

Please add me to your email news list*

Yes

To learn more about Kate Warne read The Pinks

Enter now to win a copy of The Pinks:

The First Female Detectives, Operatives and Spies with

the Pinkerton National Detective Agency

An Interview with History Muse

I knew Allan Pinkerton had hired a woman detective just as his agency was getting started. I’ve thought about creating a fictional woman detective working for Pinkerton after the Civil War—but it never occurred to me that he’d hired more than one. Chris Enss, with her excellent book, The Pinks: The First Women Detectives, Operatives and Spies with the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, shows us the work of ten “Lady Pinks,” women of intelligence and nerve who carried out complicated spy missions for the Union during the Civil War.

Kate Warne was the first. She was a young widow when she walked into Pinkerton’s office in 1856, and asked for a job as a detective. She told him women could often find out things that men could not. Pinkerton was an enthusiastic innovator, willing to defy convention if he thought it would work, and he hired her.

A complicated first case

Two days after she was hired, Kate Warne was on her first case. Large sums of money had disappeared from the care of an elite express company: one locked pouch with $10,000, and another with $40,000. Pinkerton suspected the manager of the company, but the case against him seemed very weak. Still, when the manager left town for a while, the Pinkertons followed him, and noted that he purchased expensive clothes for himself and his wife, stayed at the finest hotels, and invested in racehorses. His actions prompted his arrest. He was taken to a prison in New York.

His wife left town, to visit relatives in Philadelphia. Six Pinkerton agents went to work.

A 19th century Mission: Impossible

Enss spins a suspenseful story of how the Pinkertons worked this case. Kate Warne made friends with the wife, telling her a long story about a husband falsely imprisoned as a forger.  Another Pinkerton agent, tall and remarkably good-looking, charmed her at dinner gatherings. A third agent got himself hired as the husband’s lawyer, with another agent as his courier. After several deftly told twists and turns, the Pinkertons win the case. I couldn’t help but think of the various Mission: Impossible teams.

Author interview

Chris Enss is not only an author, but also a scriptwriter, a comedienne, a wonderful writer about the American West, and a private detective. She graciously agreed to answer some questions I posed:

History Muse: How did you decide to write this book?

Chris: I am fascinated with women in history who excelled in non-traditional roles.  Kate Warne was one of those women.  I was equally intrigued by Pinkerton himself.  He was a pioneer in the industry of private investigation.  The story of women Pinkerton detectives was begging to be told.

History Muse: I think many of us think of detective work and spy work as solitary, but these women were often part of teams that, frankly, reminded me of Mission: Impossible. How often does that happen? And are you considering a screenplay based on any of these chapters?

Chris: What’s interesting about PI work is that every case is different.  There are times working alone has its advantages and just as many instances when working with a team is important.  I’m am amazed at the dedication The Pinks had to stay on the job for so long.  They had to go undercover for several months and they were content with the case being solved.  No one was out for individual glory.

In my PI work I am generally alone.  I’ve not been involved in any team investigations.  I’m sure the Pinkerton National Detective Agency continues to work with teams to get their suspect.

I am happy to report that Alan Kaplan and Alicia Keyes have optioned The Pinks.  I’m not sure if the program will be a cable series or what, but I’m excited to see what they’ll do.

History Muse: The stories in your book are mostly from the Civil War, but the Pinkerton Agency has been, and remains, part of American society to the present day. Did the agency continue to hire women after the Civil War? It was also noteworthy to me that Pinkerton hired at least one person of color and one bi-racial woman during the period covered in your book. Was that something he continued to do?

Chris: The Pinkerton National Detective Agency has always been a progressive operation.  They hired women from all walks of life and color.  Gender or race had no bearing on being hired because all Pinkerton was focused on was solving crimes.  Once Kate Warne introduced the idea of hiring a woman the flood gates were open.  I applaud Pinkerton for taking the chance he did at a time when no one else would have entertained the idea.

History Muse: The women you profile in The Pinks are remarkable women—from the first operative Kate Warne to Mary Edwards Walker, one of the few women to hold a medical degree. Is there one whose work you particularly admire? Do you think the brains and resourcefulness these women showed is rare, or do you think a lot more people (including female people) could do what they did, given the chance?

Chris: Kate’s story is my favorite.  The spunk it took to walk into Pinkerton’s office and announce you are looking for work as a detective is such a bold, admirable act.  She was a versatile agent too.  She could play the part of a [spiritualist] medium or woman in distress very easily.  One of the key ingredients of being a good private investigator is patience.  You have to plan, execute, and wait, wait, wait.  Kate was good at the waiting.  Many people change their minds about the profession because there is so much waiting.  Motion pictures and television make it seem as though the culprit is apprehended in a matter of days, but that’s not usually the case.  Anyone with great patience can excel as a private investigator.

History Muse: What’s next for you? Do you think you’ll be making more use of the extensive Pinkerton archives?

Chris: I have two new books coming out in 2018.  The first is entitled The Principles of Posse Management.  Principles of Posse Management tells the stories of the lawmen and leaders of the Old West who organized citizens in the pursuit of law and order. This collection of tales reveals what Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Buffalo Bill Cody, and other legends of the old west knew about leadership with a clever twist on the classic shoot-em-up, black-hats-vs-white-hats tale.  In the fall the book Killer Bs will be released.  That book is about the B movies made by Republic Pictures.  I am writing a book about Big Nose Kate and about the women who played important roles in building the railroad.

History Muse: I, for one, am really looking forward to reading about Big Nose Kate!

The Pinks reads like a historical thriller,

with one fascinating plot twist: it is based wholly on truth.

Chris Enss’s The Pinks offers an engrossing look at the women’s flank of the famed Pinkerton group, which provided services of security, protection, investigation, and, in many cases, infiltration by its initially all-male staff of “private eyes.”

Allan Pinkerton had an innovative and invasive approach to dealing with crime and criminals. After immigrating to the United States from Scotland, he eventually established the Pinkerton offices in Chicago. Six years after the agency opened, Kate Warne had the audacious foresight to apply for a job as a Pinkerton detective, despite the fact that Pinkerton himself had never considered hiring women. Warne argued that women could assume undercover roles as ably as men, and that feminine intuition and charm could help them excel as undercover agents.

Though Pinkerton knew the work would be dangerous, he hired Warne and assigned her to numerous cases. Enss depicts Warne as an excellent actress, able to alter her appearance, accent, and mood quickly and convincingly. Pinkerton’s investigations were often complex and went on for extended periods of time as the agents gained the confidence of key individuals—or the guilty parties themselves. Warne rose to every challenge, including escorting a disguised Abraham Lincoln to Washington via train in 1861. The then president-elect was in danger of assassination by a Baltimore cadre of secessionists who wanted Lincoln dead before he even had a chance to take office.

The Pinks notes how Warne’s success encouraged Pinkerton to employ other women, placing them in roles of general investigation or even espionage during the Civil War. They pursued murderers, carried classified documents, decoded messages, and maintained their cover in highly charged situations. Ultimately, the Pinkerton logo became that of a watchful female eye, accompanied by the apt motto of “We Never Sleep.” However, despite Pinkerton’s equal-opportunity mind-set, official American police forces did not hire female detectives until the late nineteenth century.

The Pinks details Warne’s career as a Pinkerton detective, along with various other cases assigned to female agents like Hattie Lawton, Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, and the artistically gifted Lavinia “Vinnie” Ream. Filled with intrigue, suspense, bravery, and women’s accomplishments, The Pinks reads like a historical thriller with one fascinating plot twist: it is based wholly on truth.

Enter now to win a copy of The Pinks

Enter now to win a copy of

The Pinks: The First Women Detectives, Operatives, and Spies with

the Pinkerton National Detective Agency

The Pinks: The First Women Detectives, Operatives, and Spies with the Pinkerton National Detective Agency is recommended for history, women’s issues, and sociology holdings with a special interest in law enforcement as it surveys the Pinkerton Detective Agency and the true stories surrounding the first woman detective in America and those who came after her. Chapters capture feats of courage, daring, and historical import as they follow female agents who pursue justice and whose exploits added to American history and early struggles for justice. No women’s history collection should be without this lively, important survey. Midwest Book Review