Dashiell Hammett

"Hammett gave murder back to the kind of people who do it for a reason, not just to provide a corpse; and with means at hand, not with handwrought dueling pistols, curare, and tropical fish."

Early life

Hammett was born in St. Mary's County in Southern Maryland on the Western Shore of Maryland. His parents were Richard Thomas and Annie Bond Dashiell (the name being an Americanization of the French De Chiel). "Dash" left school when he was 13 years old and held several jobs before working for the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. He served as an operative for the Pinkerton Agency from 1915 to 1921, with time off to serve stateside in the Motor Ambulance Corps. However, the agency's role in union strike-breaking eventually disillusioned him. In Butte, Montana, a leading union organizer named Frank Little was viciously murdered. Pinkerton agents were thought to be involved, although the crime was never solved.

Related Topics:
St. Mary's County - Maryland - Pinkerton National Detective Agency

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During World War I, Hammett joined the American Field Service in France but did not volunteer for dangerous ambulance duty. After entering the U.S. Army, he was assigned to an ambulance company but he contracted tuberculosis and spent the war as a patient in a hospital in America.

Related Topics:
World War I - American Field Service - France - U.S. Army - Tuberculosis

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After the war, he turned to drinking, advertising, and eventually, writing. His work at the detective agency provided him the inspiration for his writings.

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