There are many factors and events that led to the development of the detective novel of the 1920s. Since July 4, 1776, America has been coined the land of opportunity: a land free for all people and for all purposes. It was also a country full of immigrants seeking the same prosperity. The only problem was that this “American Dream” didn't come true as quickly as many thought. This led to the growth of the American gun culture that was already deeply rooted in the roots of this country. Immigrants who felt they were being denied the American dream were quick to rush the process and face it at gunpoint. These types of cases led to the cowboys and outlaws of the Wild West. At the same time, America was in the midst of its golden industrial age. These two factors led to the creation of private police forces that provided protection against criminals, train robbers, and even the enforcement of workers in places like Chicago. PPFs like the Pinkerton Agency also reportedly provided military-style services to the government. At one point, the Pinkerton Agency employed more agents than the United States Army. Unfortunately, these agents were often as ruthless and corrupt as the outlaws they were tasked with arresting. They eventually became the inspiration for hard-boiled detectives in America. The golden age of crime fiction came shortly after the First World War. Economic growth combined with the introduction of Prohibition led to the rise of the American gangsters of the 1920s. These gangsters were often wealthy enough to “buy off” the police and present themselves as businessmen. They became more respected than officials, which eventually led to people seeking out private investigators only to…half of paper…they turned out to be part of a notorious gang. These situations don't happen in every hard-boiled story, but you can see how drastic the plot is compared to its classic counterpart. These features continued to appear in stories such as Black Mask, Dime Detective, and other major pulp fiction publications. Detectives like Race Williams, Continental Op, and Oliver Quade appeared month after month as readers demanded more of this “shoot first, ask questions later” narrative. For the youth of the 1920s, these hardened detectives provided release from the depressive era they were entering. The genre progressed in the 1930s and became a solid part of American culture. In the years since, we've started to see signs of the tough detective in movies and comics. The tough detective has evolved into a distinct part of American culture that is here to stay