Anarchists, Lovers, and the Birth of the FBI

July 23rd, 1892. Henry Clay Frick is one of America’s leading industrialists. To Alexander Berkman, he’s one of America’s leading villains. Berkman is an anarchist, along with his partner, Emma Goldman. They believe the current order of things needs to change, and one way to make change is through violence.

Frick is meeting with his associates in his Pittsburgh office when Berkman bursts into the room and draws his gun. The men lock eyes, knowing that their fates are about to be forever changed. 

Why did the "Queen of Anarchism" and her partner target one of America's wealthiest men? And how did the attack help lead to the rise of J. Edgar Hoover and policing as we know it?

Special thanks to Steven Johnson, author of The Infernal Machine: A True Story of Dynamite, Terror, and the Rise of the Modern Detective. We also referred to the books Love, Anarchy & Emma Goldman by Candace Falk; American Anarchy by Michael Willrich; and Sasha and Emma by Paul Avrich and Karen Avrich.

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