Historical Research & Writing History

While reading about John Dillinger and his gang, Colleen (aka Osh), who posts on the Public Enemies Blog, found an interesting flaw. In Bryan Burrough's book, Public Enemies, Burrough states that Anna Patzke was the bank teller Dillinger took hostage during the 1933 Racine bank heist. In several other books and newspaper clippings Ursula Patzke is referred to as the bank teller taken hostage. Anna Patzke was the significant other of Dillinger's plastic surgeon.

After I researched and compared notes with Colleen, I agree, Ursula Patzke was the bank teller taken hostage by the Dillinger gang.

As a historian, researcher, and a writer getting the facts straight is very important, however, taking into account the amount of research that goes into a book like Public Enemies is intense and understandable how an error can be made.

Please don't get me wrong and think I approve of making historical errors, because I don't. Accuracy in research is VERY, VERY important, which leads to the importance of documentation. I am a skeptic when it comes to research, which makes me an obsessive researcher ~ you know, leaves no stone unturned.

Mr. Burrough has, overall, written a splendid book. He attempted to put together a list of characters and to tell their story in a way that no other has. The book has drawn interests from Michael Mann, who is now making it into a major motion picture with outstanding actors and the book has provoked readers to look further into Dillinger and his "bad" habits.

I have nothing but respect for Mr. Burrough and admire the fact that he took on such a difficult task of putting the crime spree of the early 1930s into a time line with its players so we all can learn about that period in American history.

If you want to read the conversation Colleen and I had and to see the actual documentation we found please check out the history forum.