Melvin Purvis was a lawman. He worked for the FBI. He helped catch bad men. This was a hard job. He worked very hard to keep us safe. Do you want to learn more about him?
Melvin Purvis was a lawman. He worked for the FBI. He grew up in South Carolina.
He went to school to learn law. Then he went to work in Washington. He wanted an adventure. He joined the group that became the FBI.
He was a leader in Chicago. He worked to catch bank robbers. One robber was named John Dillinger.
Purvis worked with many other agents. Some agents were hurt while they worked. This was a very hard job.
He helped catch the bad men. He did this to keep people safe.
Melvin Purvis was an FBI agent. He was born in South Carolina in 1903.
Purvis went to law school. He wanted a life of adventure. He joined the Bureau of Investigation in 1926. This group later became the FBI.
Purvis rose quickly in his job. He led the Chicago office in 1932. He worked hard to catch criminals. One famous robber was John Dillinger.
In 1934, agents tried to catch Dillinger at a lodge. It was a dark and messy night. The raid went wrong. Some innocent people were hurt during the fight. This was a very hard time for the FBI.
Purvis also helped catch Dillinger using a tip. A woman named Anna Sage helped the agents. She told them where Dillinger would go. Purvis worked with other leaders to catch the robbers. Later, Purvis served in the military. He worked with many important leaders during the war.
Melvin Purvis was a famous agent for the Bureau of Investigation. This group was the forerunner to the FBI. He was born in Timmonsville, South Carolina, in 1903. His father was a tobacco farmer and a businessman. Purvis was the fifth of eight children in his family. He was a very busy student in high school. He played football and baseball for his school. He also played the drums in the school orchestra.
Purvis wanted to find adventure in his life. He went to the University of South Carolina for law school. He graduated with a law degree in 1922. After that, he worked as a lawyer and an insurance adjuster. He tried to get a job as a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That job did not work out for him. Instead, he joined the Bureau of Investigation in December 1926. He began his new work in February 1927. He was known for being very loyal to his job.
Purvis rose through the ranks of the Bureau very quickly. By 1932, he was in charge of the office in Chicago. He led many important investigations during this time. One case involved a man named John Factor. Factor claimed he was kidnapped near Elkhorn, Wisconsin. Purvis and his team tracked a gang called the Touhy gang. This led to the arrest of Roger Touhy. Purvis also looked into a plane crash for United Airlines. He found that the crash was caused by foul play.
In 1934, Purvis worked to catch the robber John Dillinger. One night, agents tried to raid a place called Little Bohemia Lodge. The roads were muddy and full of holes. It was very dark and the agents could not see well. The raid was a failure because the gangsters escaped. Sadly, some innocent people were hurt during the confusion. This was a very difficult time for the FBI.
Purvis eventually helped catch Dillinger using a special tip. A woman named Anna Sage agreed to help the agents. She told Purvis that Dillinger might go to a theater. This information helped the agents find him. Purvis also had a long career in the military later on. He worked with General George Patton during the war. He was also involved with the Nuremberg Trials. He lived until 1960.
Melvin Horace Purvis II was a prominent federal agent for the Bureau of Investigation. This agency was the forerunner to the modern Federal Bureau of Investigation, or FBI. Born in Timmonsville, South Carolina, on October 24, 1903, Purvis was the fifth of eight children. His father, Melvin Horace Purvis Sr., was a tobacco farmer and a businessman. Purvis attended Timmonsville High School, where he was a very active student. He served as the business manager for the yearbook and the historian for his class. He also played on the football and baseball teams and played drums in the school orchestra. After high school, he attended the University of South Carolina. He earned a law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1922.
After graduating, Purvis began a career in law and insurance. He practiced as a junior attorney at the firm of Willcox & Hardee in Florence for two years. He also worked as an insurance adjuster for W. H. Clarkson & Co for 18 months. Seeking adventure, he moved to Washington, D.C. He unsuccessfully attempted to find work in the Foreign Service as a diplomat. In December 1926, he applied to the Justice Department. He was hired by the Bureau of Investigation and began his service in February 1927. Investigators noted that he was honest, industrious, and ambitious. However, they also noted he was not considered a "money maker."
Purvis rose through the agency ranks with significant speed. His performance reviews showed 100% loyalty to the Bureau. Early in his career, Director J. Edgar Hoover chided him for low scores regarding Bureau regulations. Purvis improved these scores to 100% before becoming the Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago office. By 1932, he had managed Bureau offices in Birmingham, Alabama, and Oklahoma City. He also served in Cincinnati before his move to Chicago. In Chicago, he led an investigation into the crash of United Airlines Trip 23. His team discovered that foul play was the cause of the crash.
During his time in Chicago, Purvis investigated the kidnapping of John Factor in 1933. Factor was taken near Elkhorn, Wisconsin, while returning from gambling. A man named Roger Touhy was convicted of the kidnapping. However, Touhy claimed Factor had faked the event to avoid being sent to the United Kingdom for fraud. The FBI investigated because the kidnapping had been officially reported. Factor was released after 11 days of being beaten and burned. Investigators found the house where he was held and tracked the Touhy gang. Agents found the gang's car filled with guns and equipment like linen strips and window sash cord.
In 1934, Purvis became central to the hunt for the bank robber John Dillinger. Dillinger had robbed ten banks by March 1934. The FBI could only get involved once Dillinger drove across a state boundary. On April 20, 1934, Dillinger's gang arrived at the Little Bohemia Lodge in northern Wisconsin. Agents attempted a raid on the lodge at night. The roads were muddy, potholed, and very dark. During the raid, agents accidentally shot and killed Eugene Boiseneau, a 33-year-old worker. They also wounded Tom Morris and John Hoffman. The gangsters escaped through second-story windows. This raid was considered the FBI's worst failure for 59 years.
Purvis also faced scrutiny regarding an interrogation of a man named John Kelly. Agents had led Kelly to believe he was on trial to scare him into telling the truth. This was known as a mock trial. Director Hoover expressed disturbance over the incident. Purvis claimed he only witnessed a stern lecture, but Hoover later found that a mock trial had indeed occurred. Despite these challenges, Purvis played a key role in the eventual capture of Dillinger. He worked with Anna Sage, an immigrant who provided a tip about Dillinger's habits. Sage told agents that Dillinger liked to visit the Marbro Theater. This information allowed agents to deploy and prepare for the encounter.
Beyond his work in law enforcement, Purvis had a distinguished military career. He served during a time of great global conflict. He was directly involved with General George Patton. His service also connected him to the trials following World War II. He was involved with the proceedings of the Nuremberg Trials. These trials were held to prosecute leaders for their actions during the war. Purvis lived until February 29, 1960. His life spanned the era of early federal law enforcement and the major conflicts of the mid-20th century.
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