Inspired by this wonderful blog, in which Harry McFry investigates the case of a missing family, I wanted to post about 19th century detectives. It proved to be difficult!
One of the most famous and biggest detective agencies is Pinkertons, or Pinkerton National Detective Agency (but they were also a private guard, with police-like duties,) founded in the 1850s. It is, however, utterly boring because this agency mostly dealt with preventing strikes, and not with investigating murders or missing families. Pinkerton agents were also hired to track western outlaws like Jesse James, the Reno brothers, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
Jesse James, who will get his own post later on.
So the actual detectives do not seem very interesting. Let’s move on to detective fiction! It is generally assumed detective fiction started with Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”, which featured the first fictional detective ever: C. Auguste Dupin. Of course the very famous Sherlock Holmes is also a 19th century product, the first publication was in 1887.
Charles Dickens’ “Bleak House” also features a detective subplot, where inspector Bucket investigates the killing of a lawyer.
I really wanted to include Agatha Christie because her work is absolutely great, but it’s the wrong century. If there is any more Victorian detective literature, let us know through the comments!
Hi! My name is Geerte, I'm a researcher of Nineteenth century history from the Netherlands. This blog is where I write about my favourite subject. Feel free to browse around! 
Thank you for your kind comments! Harry McFry has been stuck in the kitchen of a small property in Telford for longer than might seem himanly possible, but I have high hopes he will be rescued soon!
Best wishes and kind regards
THJnr
Wilkie Collins is perhaps more Edwardian than Victorian, but he is the right century (19th) and he certainly qualifies as a mystery writer- although not necessarily as a writer of dectective fiction, as he never had a signature detecting character like Doyle or Poe. G.K. Chesterson, on the other hand, certainly qualifies as a detective writer but he is *just* over the line, 19th century-wise, as his most famous mystery novel, The Man Who Was Thursday, was not published until 1907- according to Wikipedia.
However, both are certainly worth noting in any article about early mysteries, and both are close enough to the subject at hand that I felt them well worth mentioning.
Yes, you’re absolutely right. Wilkie Collings is often overlooked (also by me, obviously) but he certainly belongs with the detective writers. Thank you for your contribution!
What about Father Brown by G.K. Chesterton? He seems to start late Victorian and end up Edwardian…