Wood Detective Agency records, 1865-1945.

Format:

Book

Series:

Crime, Punishment, and Popular Culture, 1790-1920.

Crime, Punishment, and Popular Culture, 1790-1920

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Criminal investigation--United States.

Criminal investigation.

United States.

Prive investigators--United States.

Prive investigators.

Crime--United States.

Crime.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (494 manuscripts (9 items, 3,601 pages)) : 333 illustrations, portraits.

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : [publisher not identified], 1865-1945.

System Details:

text file

Summary:

This collection includes accounts, articles, biographies, cartes-de-visite, case notes, correspondence, clippings, photographs, speeches, statements, tintypes and wanted posters. The main body of the material relates to criminals and criminal activities occurring in the United States, particularly New England. The photographic material in the collection offers glimpses at both the criminal and victim. The subject of abused children is well documented in the collection, with over fourteen photographs depicting young "padrone slaves," who were Italian immigrants forced into a form of slavery that existed in Boston between 1878-1881. The collection offers a wealth of information in the form of statements, biographies and accounts on over four hundred cases, criminals and notable personalities. The biographical materials retained by James Rodney Wood, Jr., found in series five of the collection, offers an invaluable perspective into the lives and interests of both Wood Jr. and Sr. The photographs of James Rodney Wood, Jr. offer visual documentation of over twelve murder scenes taken from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Included among the scenes are: the Hayward murder of Winthrop, Maine (1925); the Gerrish murder of Amherst, Maine (1924); and the Broadwell Murder of Barre, Vermont (1919). Additional material in the photographic collection includes ballistics readings, handwriting analysis and portraits of infamous murderers such as Jesse Pomeroy, Russell Noble and Byron Pettibone.

Notes:

Date range of documents: 1865-1945.

Source institution: Harvard University Law Library.

Local Notes:

Images from the source libraries are selected contents of the original collection materials as representative of their value and pertinence to the digital product.

OCLC:

937021663

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.