Historical Documents from the Bureau's Founding
Los
Angeles, California
November 19, 1943
Memorandum
for the Director:
Re:
Early History of the Bureau of Investigation, United States Department of Justice
Under instructions from Assistant Director LOUIS B. NICHOLS, the following
information relative to the necessity for the formation of the Bureau of
Investigation, United States Department of Justice, and some items of interest
relating to its early history are submitted by Special Agent JAMES G. FINDLAY.
Inadequate
Investigative Personnel | Land
Frauds | President
Theodore Roosevelt Takes Action | Formation
of Investigative Force in the Department | Stanley
W. Finch, First Chief of the Bureau of Investigation | System
of Reporting, 1911 to 1915 | Division
of Investigation Division Superintendents | Office
of Division of Superintendents Created August 20, 1920 | Special
Agents in Charge in 1911 | A School for Training Bureau
Personnel Was Begun in 1921 | About the Author
Inadequate Investigative
Personnel
Prior to 1906, the United States Secret Service was the principal, if not the
only, agency of the Government which was provided with criminal investigative
personnel. Some of the Government Departments and bureaus were equipped in
some way to investigate their own internal affairs.
If a United States Attorney in any district had a difficult case and desired
assistance, he would request the Attorney General to furnish an investigator
or investigators, that is, Secret Service men, to aid him in the preparation
of such a case for trial and to aid him in the trial of the case. Many of these
Secret Service investigators were not regularly appointed and commissioned "detectives",
generally known as "Secret Service operatives" or "Secret Service
men", but not United States Secret Service men.
The Chief of the United States Secret Service would recommend someone from
this prepared list to the Attorney General, and as a rule such a party would
then be assigned to conduct the investigation. Usually the investigator would
work under the direction and supervision of the United States Attorney. There
were also special cases which were handled by special assistants to the Attorney
General. Such investigations were supervised and directed by such special assistants
to the Attorney General or jointly by the United States Attorney and the special
assistant to the Attorney General.
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Land Frauds
There had been land frauds and alleged land frauds in the United States
since colonial times. In the early part of the present century there was
a great
campaign of what was called "muckraking" and land frauds, mining
frauds, coal land frauds, oil land frauds, and many others were exposed. Millions
of acres of land were involved in California, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington,
Kansas, Colorado, and other western states.
In 1907, Attorney General CHARLES J. BONAPARTE called the attention of Congress
to the fact that the Department of Justice possessed no "detective force" under
its immediate control, and that conditions were rapidly growing worse.
During 1906 and 1907, some large land fraud investigations in Oregon, California,
Kansas, and perhaps other states were in progress. These investigations were
conducted in the beginning under the jurisdiction and supervision of the Department
of the Interior. A great amount of criticism was directed at the Interior Department "muckrakers" and
by the people generally. It was reported at the time that no successful prosecution
could be had.
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President Theodore
Roosevelt Takes Action
President THEODORE ROOSEVELT, in his characteristic dynamic fashion, asserted
that the plunderers of the public domain would be prosecuted and brought to
justice.
The story has been related, and it is believed to be in substance true and
correct, that President THEODORE ROOSEVELT called Attorney General CHARLES
J. BONAPARTE to the White House and told him that he desired that the land
frauds be prosecuted vigorously, and directed that he obtain the necessary
investigative personnel to handle the matter in an expeditious and thorough
manner. It was reported that Attorney General CHARLES J. BONAPARTE applied
to the United States Secret Service for trained personnel to make the proper
and necessary investigation, and was assigned quite a force of men, who were
sent out to conduct investigations. In due course a lengthy report was submitted,
which was presented to Mr. BONAPARTE, and by Mr. BONAPARTE to President THEODORE
ROOSEVELT. The report was examined and certain features were discussed at length.
President ROOSEVELT then told Mr. BONAPARTE that this report did not contain
the true facts as he knew them, and he directed that the Attorney General send
the same men or a new crew of men to reopen the investigation and obtain the
real facts.
A new investigation was undertaken. Some of the men who were on the first assignment
and some new investigators were added. They went into the field and were gone
several months, at which time they returned and submitted a lengthy report
to Mr. BONAPARTE. This report was taken by Mr. BONAPARTE to the White House,
where it was discussed with President THEODORE ROOSEVELT. It was reported at
the time that after the President had fully considered the report, he told
Mr. BONAPARTE in most emphatic language characteristic of President ROOSEVELT
that the report was a whitewash, that it was covering up the real facts, and
that he wanted the facts, all the facts, and the true facts, and if there was
any whitewashing done he would do it himself.
It was further asserted that President ROOSEVELT directed BONAPARTE to create
an investigative service within the Department of Justice subject to no other
department or bureau, which would report to no one except the Attorney General.
It is considered thoroughly reliable that this was the incident which resulted
in the formation of the Bureau of Investigation of the United States Department
of Justice.
It was reported that BONAPARTE began immediately to make plans to create such
a force. It is also a well known that at least one United States Senator (Senator
MITCHELL of Oregon) and possible two, and two or more Congressmen and a number
of private citizens were convicted in these land fraud cases. The exact date
of the convictions are unknown to Agent.
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Formation of Investigative Force in the Department
It appears that on July
26, 1908, nine Secret Service employees of the Treasury Department were appointed
Special Agents of the Department of Justice. These, together, with thirteen
investigators who had been employed on peonage and land fraud, and twelve
examiners provided for by statute, constituted the organization of the Bureau
of Investigation of the Department of Justice. By an order of the Attorney
General they were to be under the Chief Examiner in the Department of Justice.
It is believed that no separate or special appropriation had been provided
for the Bureau of Investigation as a separate organization, but that the personnel
was paid as special examiners and from funds which were appropriated by Congress
for the use of the Attorney General in making investigations of frauds against
the government and for other purposes.
On March 16, 1909, GEORGE W. WICKERSHAM, Attorney General under President WILLIAM
HOWARD TAFT, issued an order establishing the Bureau of Investigation of the
Department of Justice. This appears to be the official act which created the
Bureau of Investigation. It is believed that Congress made an appropriation
for the Bureau of Investigation as such, effective July 1, 1909.
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Stanley W. Finch, First
Chief of the Bureau of Investigation
STANLEY W. FINCH was
the Chief Examiner in the Department of Justice, 1909, 1910, 1911, and up
to April 30, 1912, and as such was designated by the Attorney General to
be the Chief of the Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice. A. BRUCE
BIELASKI, an examiner in the Department, was his assistant.
On April 30, 1912, Mr. FINCH was made the Special Commissioner for the suppression
of white slave traffic, which office he held until January 1, 1914. He established
his office at Baltimore, Maryland, and ALPBERT H. PIKE was his assistant.
The White Slave Traffic Act was passed on June 25, 1910, and the office of
Special Commission for the suppression of white slave traffic was created because
of the importance that was being placed on that subject matter. The international
traffic in alien women for immoral purpose had reached such proportions that
a great clamor had gone up for its suppression. The only reason known to Agent
for establishing a separate office and title for the white slave traffic assignment
was that the woman suffrage movement and other women's organizations had made
a great drive to have this law passed, and it had remained rather dormant for
about two years and the women's organizations had made demands for its enforcement.
It can probably be truthfully stated that this drive really put the white slave
law into the mind of nearly everyone, and the results were that hundreds of
convictions were had and the house of commercial prostitution no longer flourished
as a recognized business.
During the period that Mr. FINCH had his office in Baltimore, all field offices
and all agents working in the Bureau of Investigation directly out of Washington
as their headquarters, furnished two copies of reports in white slave cases
to the Bureau at Washington and one copy to Mr. FINCH at Baltimore.
During the time of the drive against white slavery in 1912 and 1913, a small
number of agents, perhaps ten in all, were assigned to work under the direction
of Mr. FINCH. These agents worked in pairs, and made what might be called a
nationwide survey, which consisted in visiting every town in the United States
in which a recognized house of prostitution existed. They appointed a "local
white slave officer" in each town where a house was in operation. These
local officers were nearly all lawyers and men of good character and reputation
in their communities. While the Special Agents were in these towns making surveys,
the houses of prostitution were visited and a census of inmates was taken in
questionnaire form, giving the complete history of each inmate and especially
the length of time she had been in houses of ill fame and the names of the
landladies and, as far as possible, the names of the proprietors of each of
the houses. The proprietors usually were not the madams, but in many instances
were men or women of good reputation in the community and not suspected of
being engaged in such business.
The landlady was furnished
with printed form cards (arrival and departure cards) on which to report
to the local white slave
officer the "arrival" and "departure" of all inmates, stating
the place from which each inmate came, on arriving, where an inmate was going
when she departed. When the local white slave officer received an "arrival
card," it was his duty to see her at his office or elsewhere and get her
history of a questionnaire which was sent to Mr. FINCH's office. When the local
officer received a "departure card", it was his duty to ascertain
any facts possible about her destination and whether anyone was responsible
for her move, in an effort to ascertain the channels of commerce. All changes
of address from one town to another were tabulated on one card in the Baltimore
office. It was similar to a "criminal record" report; that is,
it showed the different places where she had practiced her business and the
time
spent in each place. A local officer was appointed in some strategic cities
where no recognized houses were located. In such places his duties consisted
in furnishing information which he could get from the police and other sources.
He would interview girls arrested by police where there was an interstate
feature and a police violation. He was also available for quick interview
in his community
in any kind of case where the Agent in Charge requested him to do so.
It is very natural that there should be many disappointments in such an organization,
but on the other hand it must be said that gratifying results were also obtained.
In 1913, a change in national administration took place, and JAMES C. McREYNOLDS
became Attorney General. Mr. McREYNOLDS had been an Assistant Attorney General
during the President TAFT administration and had prosecuted a number of the
outstanding antitrust cases, such as the Beef Trust and the Lumber Trust
Cases in Chicago.
Apparently Mr. McREYNOLDS did not see the necessity of having a separate
bureau for the suppression of white slave traffic. As a matter of fact, the
prosecutions
which had resulted during the two years of its existence and the approaching
war conditions in Europe and the exhibition of a little energy on the part
of the Immigration Service in suppressing the international features of the
white slave traffic, had really changed conditions to such an extent that
it was not necessary to continue it as a separate bureau of commission. It
also
appears that it was not really necessary in the beginning, as the Bureau
of Investigation had grown very materially in personnel. Agent does not have
any
figures, but the number of Special Agents and accountants and examiners in
1914 had probably reached approximately 250 to 300.
On January 1, 1914, the office of the Special Commissioner for the suppression
of the white slave traffic at Baltimore was closed and the office was merged
with the office of the Bureau of Investigation at Washington. Sometime after
that, Mr. FINCH became a Special Assistant to the Attorney General and was
in the Department for many years. He was endorsed for these various positions
by SERENO PAYNE, a very powerful member of Congress from New York State.
It is evident that the war in Europe was fast approaching, and it is believed
that on this account some action was taken by the Attorney General and the
Chief of the Bureau of Investigation, who at that time was A. BRUCE BIELASKI,
to retain many of the local white slave officers in the Bureau. Many of their
were given the title of Special Employee and remained in their home communities
and performed limited services of a general nature under the direction and
supervision of the Special Agents in Charge in the several field offices,
and were paid on a part time or fee basis, depending upon the number of investigations
conducted and the amount of time devoted to the Government work. Quite a
large
number of these local officers were appointed as fulltime Special Agents
and served as such throughout the World War period. Some remained in the
service
for a number of years after the war was over and served as such throughout
the World War period. Some remained in the service for a number of years
after the war was over.
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System of Reporting,
1911 to 1915
In 1911 and up until
about the time of the beginning of World War I in Europe, Agents made daily
reports covering the work done on each day. If an Agent worked on more than
one case in one day, he made a separate investigative report in each case.
A front page, or index page, was then prepared, listing the title of the
case or cases and the approximate time devoted to each case. An Agent's compensation
and expenses for each day were likewise proportioned and charged accordingly
to each case on the index page. This was done for the purpose of determining
the approximate cost of each investigation. This front page or index page
was made for everyday in the year. The investigative portion of the report
was made only for the days on which the investigative work was done.
Two copies of all investigative reports and two copies of the index pages were
sent to the Bureau for each day. One copy of the investigative report was retained
in the field office file for the use of the field office. One extra copy was
made and kept in the field office until the investigation was presented to
the United States Attorney of to the Special Assistant Attorney General, as
in antitrust cases, at which time this copy was given to the attorney. If an
Agent was working on antitrust cases with headquarters in Washington, he kept
one copy in his personal possession for his use in conducting further investigations,
and one copy which was to be given to the Special Assistant Attorney General
or the United States Attorney was sent to the Bureau for that purpose. In such
cases the field office did not have a copy, but the copy which the Agent had
in his personal possession during the investigation would be turned over to
the field office covering the jurisdiction in which possible prosecutive action
would take place. If no prosecutive action appeared probable, the extra copies
were forwarded to the Bureau when the investigation was concluded.
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Division of Investigation
Division Superintendents
The title of "Division
Superintendent" has been utilized on two separate and distinct occasions
by the Bureau. The first occasion was during the winter of 1911 and was brought
about in the following manner,
to Agent's personal knowledge:
CHARLES F. DE WOODY was Special Agent in Charge in Chicago at that time. Nearly
all of the Bureau offices except Chicago and New York had a Special Agent in
Charge, and a few of them had one field agent. The New York Office had a Special
Agent in Charge and about six to eight field agents. Also a number of special
examiners, accountants, and antitrust agents made New York City their operating
base.
The Chicago Office had a Special Agent in Charge, two stenographers, and an
average of about six regular field agents on general investigative work. There
were also one or two special examiners and two or three accountants who made
their working base at Chicago. There were also an average of about five antitrust
agents working out of Chicago, but their headquarters were in Washington.
Mr. DE WOODY conceived the idea that there should be a distinction made between
a "large office" like Chicago and a "small office" such
as Kansas City, for example, which had a Special Agent in Charge and no other
employee, not even a stenographer.
Mr. DE WOODY was a close friend of the Attorney General, GEORGE W. WICKERSHAM,
and at one time, Agent believes, was his secretary, The Beef Trust Case was
on trial in Chicago for a period of about three months during the winter of
1911-1912, and during the trial Attorney General WICKERSHAM made several trips
to Chicago to confer with United States Attorney JAMES K. WILKERSON and Assistant
Attorney General JAMES C. McREYNOLDS, who were the Government counsels in the
case.
It was at this time that Mr. DE WOODY assumed the title "Division Superintendent".
It is believed that the Attorney General sanctioned this title to the Chicago
and New York Offices. It is Agent's recollection that these two offices continued
to use this title until about August 20, 1920.
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Office of Division
of Superintendents Created August 20, 1920
Prior to August 20, 1920,
the Agent in Charge was the executive officer of the field office where he
was located, and it was incumbent on him to keep the Bureau at Washington
fully advised of all matters transpiring in his territory.
A change in this procedure was made in August 1920, and nine divisions were
created in the field, each under the supervision of a Division Superintendent
who was to represent the Chief of the Bureau and supervise investigations and
arrange personnel in each division and exercise general supervision of all
matters in his division and report to the Chief of the Bureau. He was the personal
representative of the Chief of the Bureau in the field.
The nine offices were established in the cities listed below, and the names
of the Division Superintendents are shown where remembered:
From 1914 through the
World War I period there were so many changes in the Special Agents in Charge
and the service grew so rapidly that it would be impossible to give the names
of the Special Agents in Charge with any degree of accuracy, although Agent
could give the names of a large number.
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A School
for Training Bureau Personnel Was Begun in 1921
WILLIAM
J. BURNS became the Chief of the Bureau of Investigation on
August 22, 1921. It is Agent's
recollection that Mr. BURNS was the first head of the Bureau
to use the title "Director",
Federal Bureau
of Investigation.
Director BURNS and Special Agent in Charge EDWARD J. BRENNAN had worked together
as agents in the United States Secret Service prior to 1908 and were personal
friends. Soon after Mr. BUNRS became Director of the Bureau, a system of training
was devised for prospective Special Agents. Prior to that time no special training
of any sort had been provided. All new appointees were required to report to
Chicago to attend a course of lectures given by Special Agent in Charge BRENNAN
covering a period of thirty days before beginning work on their own resources.
Agent never attended this school, but it was reported that it dealt principally
with criminal law and evidence and personal lectures on how to know evidence
and how to obtain and preserve it. A short time after this course of training
was begun, Special Agent in Charge BRENNAN was made Special Agent in Charge
in the New York Bureau Office. The place of training was likewise shifted to
New York City, as Mr. BRENNAN was the chief lecturer, if not the only lecturer
in the school. This training was carried on in a more or less haphazard manner
for a period of perhaps two years.
From the formation of the Bureau of Investigation until the appointment of
Mr. BURNS as Director on August 22, 1921, it was rather definitely understood
and very generally adhered to that Special Agents of the Bureau would be attorneys
and accountants. However, during the World War many were appointed who did
not possess such qualifications. As a matter of fact, some had no qualifications
for the position. During the regime of Director BURNS, it reached the extreme
in the opposite direction and almost no agents were appointed who had legal
training. The principal qualification of an applicant was that he had been
previously employed as a private detective or by detective agencies. In many
instances the prior employment and experience had been with the William J.
Burns International Detective Agency. Many were appointed for political reasons
only. Age limits and educational achievements had no place in the roster of
requirements for appointment. Many did not have a high school education and
some were more than 60 years of age when they entered the service.
Immediately after the present Director. Mr. J. EDGAR HOOVER, was appointed
on May 20, 1924, he established a school for new agents with a well planned
curriculum of training. The entrance age was fixed at 25 to 35, and everyone
was required to take this course before entering upon the duties of Special
Agent or Special Accountant.
Following this, a retraining school was established by Mr. HOOVER for the training
of old agents and the retraining of the agents who had received training before
entering the service. The results of this training and the training provided
by the FBI National Police Academy have become so well established and so well
known and recognized that they will not be related here.
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About the Author
Special Agent James G.
Findlay entered on duty as a Special Agent on August 29, 1911. Findlay was
a native of Eldon, Missouri, born to Scottish immigrants on 5/20/1882.
Prior to joining the Bureau, Findlay clerked in the U.S. Senate. After practicing
law in the District of Columbia for two years he joined the Bureau, which had
been created three years earlier in July of 1908. In 1912, Agent Findlay was
admitted to the Bar of the United States Supreme Court. Although it is not
known if Findlay ever argued a case before the Court; he was awarded a Juris
Doctor by Lincoln University, San Francisco in 1931.
Upon entering in 1911, Findlay was assigned to Oklahoma City. By 1914 he was
designated Special Agent in Charge. He served as SAC until 1924, when he was
demoted to Special Agent and assigned to Kansas City. Subsequently, Findlay
served as Agent in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Birmingham. In 1933 he returned
to Los. Findlay served on the Communist Squad at Los Angeles from its creation
in 1940 and was considered particularly knowledgeable about Communist matters
in Hollywood. At some point in the 1940's, he was placed on limited duty due
to his age and a heart condition.
Findlay retired on 5/31/1952 as he had reached mandatory retirement. He was
reappointed the next day, though, because he desired to remain in the Bureau.
Agent Findlay died on 5/5/1960, having served as an Agent in the Bureau for
49 years.
About the Memorandum
In 1943 [the 35th anniversary
of the Bureau], Assistant Director Louis B. Nichols asked Special Agent Findlay,
the Bureau's oldest agent at that time, to prepare a memorandum on his experiences
in the Bureau of Investigation in its early years. In his memo, Findlay provided
a brief history of the Bureau of Investigation's origins and then described
aspects of the Bureau of Investigation from 1908 through 1924.
The document that follows is a typed copy of Findlay's 1943 memorandum. An
old photo reproduction of the memo in OPCA files was used to make this document
as the location of the original memo is currently unknown.
The pagination of Findlay's memo was maintained as were the spelling,
punctuation, and grammar. "Sic" has not been added in
order to preserve the near appearance and feel of Findlay's report.
Underlining in the copy below appears
as it did in the memo, but bold and italics in the title on page
1 were added to mimic typographic effects in Findlay's memo.
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