ABSTRACT
John Scobell kicked his horse and urged him to go faster. Suddenly, Scobell’s horse stumbled and fell to the ground. Scobell went flying into a ditch. Scobell pulled out his Smith & Wesson revolver and got ready to stand his ground. Allan Pinkerton considered John Scobell to be one of the best spies under his direction, and he was the first Black spy hired by the US government. Pinkerton realized that Scobell could be a great asset to the Union effort. The culture of the slave owners in the South meant that Black slaves and servants were often ignored. Pinkerton trusted Scobell implicitly and actually had Scobell recruit additional spies for the Union. At the end of the war, McClellan and Pinkerton both agreed that the information they received from their Black agents, including Scobell, was invaluable.
