The Spy of the Rebellion (1883) recounts the Union's secret war, from foiling the 1861 Baltimore Plot against President-elect Lincoln to the Union Intelligence Service's operations during the Peninsula Campaign and beyond. Drawn from case files and dispatches, the book blends documentary detail with Victorian melodrama: episodic chapters, moral asides, and cliffhangers frame portraits of field operatives, notably Timothy Webster and pioneering agent Kate Warne. Situated in the postbellum marketplace of memory and emerging spy literature, Pinkerton's narrative offers a primary window-and a self-crafted myth-into wartime espionage and bureaucratic infighting. A Scottish immigrant and founder of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, Allan Pinkerton brought abolitionist sympathies and industrial-era discipline to American policing. As McClellan's intelligence chief, he professionalized surveillance and undercover tradecraft. Writing later, he mined agency archives to defend his estimates of Confederate strength, honor fallen operatives, promote his firm, and justify the nascent craft of national intelligence. Recommended for students of Civil War command, intelligence history, and the cultural politics of memory, this volume rewards critical reading. Pair it with modern assessments to correct exaggerations while appreciating its granular vignettes, gendered breakthroughs, and procedural innovations. It remains a seminal, teachable artifact of American espionage. Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the author's voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readable-distilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Author Biography · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.

Allan Pinkerton (1819-1884) was a Scottish American detective and spy, best known for creating the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. Pinkerton started with detective work back in Scotland, and in 1849 he was appointed as the first police detective in Chicago. Year later he partnered with Chicago attorney Edward Rucker in forming the Detective Agency which became famous for solving a series of train robberies during the 1850s. Pinkerton produced numerous popular detective books, based on his own exploits and those of his agents.