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Arthur Ignacious Conan Doyle
Arthur Conan Doyle is born in Edinburgh, Scotland to Charles and Mary Doyle. The Oxford Dictionary of Forensic Science lists him as, "A British author famous for creating the Sherlock Holmes character, who has become a widely recognized symbol of scientific detective work."
He was a doctor, author, occasional investigator, and even believed in fairies. USE WALL STREET JOURNAL CITATION -
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From Fiction to Reality: How Sherlock Holmes Inspired Change in the World of Criminal Investigation
Citations will be listed separately as they would not fit anywhere on here with the amount of information I wanted to include. -
A Study in Scarlet
The first Sherlock Holmes novel was published in Beeton's Christmas Annual 1887. Arthur Conan Doyle goes on to write a total of 4 novels and 56 short stories involving the great detective and the good Dr. Watson over the next 40 years. With a 12 year break in the middle. -
Jack the Ripper
The first Jack the Ripper murder occurs and as more bodies continue to add up, it becomes clear that the police procedures for investigating crimes are lacking. Focus at the time was on eye witness accounts and police had no inclination to preserve and investigate the crime scenes. “Back then there was no crime scene contamination. A crime scene was just a crime scene and whoever needed to be inside of it, went." -
Real life Sherlock Holmes
Dr. Joseph Bell a lecturer, doctor, and more, was Conan Doyle's mentor throughout university and his inspiration for Sherlock Holmes. Bell had the ability to "deduce" his patients' occupations, hobbies, ailments, etc. In 1891 he was called in to consult on a case involving a young man shot during a hunting trip, known now as the Ardlamont Mystery. Gun ballistics had a major role in Bell's investigation which revealed that the man had been murdered by his mentor for the life insurance money. -
Hans Gross
Hans Gross, an Austrian judge, wrote a manual for criminal investigators. He is thought to be, "The first person to turn the great detective's fiction into fact." He was a fan of Holmes. His manual was published six years after Sherlock Holmes debuted. -
The Final Problem
Conan Doyle kills off his famous sleuth in a fight with Prof. James Moriarty at the Reichenback Falls. Conan Doyle had tired of writing the stories. It was well known that he absolutely hated Sherlock Holmes. He is thought (although unconfirmed) to have stated; "If in 100 years I am only known as the man who invented Sherlock Holmes, then I will have considered myself a failure." Holmes, famous, well beyond that of, perhaps, any other fictional character ever, was loathed by his creator. -
Identification of Blood
Paul Uhlenhuth, a German bacteriologist and immunologist and Professor, developed the first definitive test for identifying human blood from animal blood. Holmes was using tests to identify whenter stains were blood or other substances from the very beginning. -
Doyle is Knighted
Arthur Conan Doyle is knighted for his services in the South African War. Although he believed it was for a short work of his called "The War in South Africa: Its Cause and Conduct." Perhaps it was for both. -
The Adventure of the Norwood Builder
This Holmes story is one of the first to focus on fingerprint use in crime investigation. Dr. Locard (more on him later) used tree gum in his fingerprint studies and discovered microscopic skin pores that were unique and hard to fake. If the fingerprint alone could not be used to identify the culprit then the pores in the print could be examined. -
The Return of Sherlock Holmes
12 years after "The Fall" Sherlock Holmes is revealed to has faked his death and Conan Doyle beigns writing adventures for the detective again. Continued negative feedback over Holmes death and financial troubles were his reasons for taking up the deerstalker (although Holmes never actually wore one) and magnifying glass again. -
Edmond Locard follows in Holmes footsteps
Edmond Locard, a French forensic scientist, sometimes referred to as "Sherlock Holmes of France," starts the first ever Police Crime Laboratory in the attic of the Lyon, France Police Department. He was known for detecting what the eye could not see. He says, "Sherlock Holmes was the first to realize the importance of dust. I merely copied his methods." He also stated that, "a police expert, or an examining magistrate, would not find it a waste of his time to read Doyle's novels." -
Fingerprints
The first fingerprint evidence was entered in an American court on a burglary case. Detective Sergeant Josegh Faurot had studied the method at New Scotland yard in London and was waiting for a case that would prove it's worth in New York City. During his testimony he was asked to demonstrate by testing him with an unknown set of fingerprints on a glass compared to a few sets of fingerprints on a windowsill from people in the court room. It only to Faurot five minutes to identify the prints. -
Locard and the Bank Clerk
In one of his biggest investigations ever, Locard studied, tested, and analyzed debri from under Emile Gourbin's finger nails. Gourbin had been accused of murdering his girlfriend, but had an alibi. Locard's investigation revealed trace amounts of the girlfriend's face powder under Gourbin's fingernails from where he had strangled her. Gourbin confessed and admitted to turning the clock back to trick his friends into thinking he was with them at the time of the murder. -
Forensic Laboratories!
Wilfred Derome, a Canadian forensic scientist, founded the first forensic science laboratory in North America. Montreal, Quebec, Canada. -
Medical Examiner
New York City goes from its British-based coroner systen to a medical examiner. Death investigators are now required to get training in medicine and pathology. -
Scientific Crime Detection
Dr. Locard publishes a paper where Holmes' influence is considered greatly important. This was after a paper he published on the identification of tobaccos by the study of ashes found at crime scenes. Tobacco ash was a particular expertise of Holmes and was mentioned quite often in the stories. "I know ash!" as Benedict Cumberbatch's Sherlock states. -
Microspherometer
Dr. Wilfred Derome invents the microspherometer that reveals the marks left on teh surface of bullets from the firearm. This allowed ballistics evidence to be presented in court. Before in 1913, however, Prof. Victor Balthazard, an expert on trace evidnece pointed out that every gun had imperfections that left distinct marks on the bullets. -
The Last Adventure
"The Adventure of Shocombe Old Place" part of the Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes series was the last adventure Doyle's Holmes ever had. It was published in April 1927 in Strand Magazine. -
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Dies
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle dies of a heart attack at the age of 71 in his home in Crowborough, East Sussex, England. USE WALL STREET CITATION -
Criminologist Ashton-Wolfe on Holmes and science
The Illustrated London News “It was a new idea (the study of tobacco ashes), but the police at once realised the importance of such specialized knowledge, and now every laboratory has a complete set of tables giving the appearance and composition of the various ashes...mud and soil from various districts are also classified much after the manner that Holmes described...poisons, handwriting, stains, dust, footprints, traces of wheels, the shape and position of wounds..." -
Document Analysis
The FBI starts a Document analysis section that includes typewriter types and things of that nature. Is this really connected to Sherlock Holmes in some way or is it just that science and detective work has been progressing in a normal forward motion and would have done so without Sherlock Holmes. It is hard to say, but impossible to overlook the fact that "the Holmes methods were the first in print." Therefore, he gets the credit for having pioneered forensic and detective work. -
Praise for Holmes and his investigative work
Luke S. May, a criminologist among other things, wrote a book titled "Crime's Nemesis" where he states; "Without disparaging progressive police officers of all nations, I believe that the writings of Conan Doyle have done more than any other one thing to stimulate active interest in the scientific and analytical investigation of crime. All of these men helped introduce a fundamentally new technique in crime detection." -
Blood Spatter Patterns absolve murder suspect
Dr. Sam Sheppard was accused of beating his wife Marilyn to death. He claimed he had been hit over the head and when he came to he chased a man from his home down onto the beach. No one believed his story and he was convicted. Dr. paul Kirk, a California criminalist, is called in. He finds blood spatter patterns that indicate a left handed man murdered Marilyn. Dr. Sam Sheppard was right handed. A re-trial in 1966 finds him not guilty. -
The Value of Sherlock Holmes
Sydney Smith, Prof. of Forensic Medicine in his autobiography "Mostly Murder" states; "Therein lies the value of the Sherlock Holmes stories apart from their excellent entertainment. Today criminal investigation is a science, and the plodding policeman gaping admiringly at the gifted amateur is an anachronism. This was not always so and the change owes much to the influence of Sherlock Holmes." -
Typewriting Identification catches up
David A. Crown writes and publishes his paper "Landmarks in Typewriting Identification" where he gives Sherlock Holmes credit for being the first to reference different typewritten types in "A Case of Identity" in 1891 where a typewritten letter is examined in order to identify the typewriter and find the suspect. -
Following the Evidence Trail
Dr. Frederick Rieders was called in on the case of Robert Curly, 32, who had been slowly poisoned with Thallium (a drug found in rat poison). By studying hair they retrieved from his body, he was able to put together a time table of each time Curley was poisoned. Doing this, led them to the only person who had access to him during all of those times, his wife. -
Holmes Logic helps solve Florida case
In 1999, Stephen Haines, 46, was found dead in his home in Port St. Lucie, Florida naked and surrounded by his own blood. His girlfriend was charged with his murder. But upon suspicion that her confession was coerced, Dr. Henry Lee, a world reknowned forensic scientist, was called in. Usind what he calls the Sherlock Holmes method, Lee was able to identify that the blood in the room was not from a wound inflicted on Haines. Haines had coughed and vomited it up due to chronic alcoholism. -
Gait Analysis
Holmes' methods were not always correct. He said he could tell a person's height by the length of their stride. That is not possible. A person's stride length is unique and involves too many factors. The idea for gait analysis was there, though. It was not until 2001 and the use of CCTV that it was used for forensic science. -
Royal Society of Chemistry
Sherlock Holmes is the first fictional character ever to be recognized for his contribution to forensic science. He is given an honorary fellowship by the Society by the statue erected in his honor on Baker Street. "Sherlock Holmes was way beyond his time in using chemestry and chemical sciences as a means of cracking crime." said John Watson (not the character, but man named after him). PUT CITATION HERE -
On Holmes
"Holmes still influences detective work today. The use of small clues to form a sequence of events, fingerprints, ballistics, toxicology, shoes tracks, analytical chemistry, handwriting analysis and, above all, the need to ensure a crime remains uncontaminated were all part of Holme's technique."
