{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"The Complicated History of the Pinkertons","description":"Before the FBI or Secret Service became household names, there were the Pinkertons. Founded by Scottish immigrant Allan Pinkerton in 1850, the Pinkerton National Detective Agency hunted train robbers, infiltrated criminal gangs, protected Abraham Lincoln, and developed an enormous network of private investigators. Their famous logo\u2014a watchful eye above the words \u201cWe Never Sleep\u201d\u2014helped give us the term \u201cprivate eye.\u201d But the Pinkertons had a darker role. Industrialists hired them to infiltrate unions, break strikes, and confront workers. At their height, the agency reportedly employed more operatives than the United States had soldiers. In this episode of History Shorts, we trace the remarkable and controversial history of the Pinkerton Agency\u2014from Civil War espionage and Wild West outlaws to violent labor disputes\u2014and explore how a private detective organization became one of the most powerful forces in nineteenth-century America. &amp;nbsp; SUPPORT THE SHOW:&amp;nbsp;https:\/\/www.patreon.com\/c\/HistoryShortsPodcast ADVERTISE:&amp;nbsp;https:\/\/www.historyshortspodcast.com\/advertise&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; LEARN MORE:&amp;nbsp;https:\/\/www.historyshortspodcast.com\/ SPONSORED BY:&amp;nbsp;https:\/\/www.podcastrepublic.net\/get-it-now&amp;nbsp; ","author_name":"History Shorts","author_url":"https:\/\/www.historyshortspodcast.com","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/42641915\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/205668970"}