221B Baker Street · London

No case too large. No cock too small.

Private consulting detective. Engaged by individuals, families, and Franklin County PD when conventional inquiry has reached its limits.

Established1881
Location221B Baker Street
AssociateDr. J. H. Watson
ReferralsFranklin County PD
ConsultationsBy appointment
Practice areas

Services

Each engagement is handled personally. No matter is delegated, and none is considered beneath attention.

Criminal investigation

Independent inquiry into theft, fraud, and matters the official police have been unable to resolve.

Missing persons & property

Tracing individuals, documents, and valuables through observation, record, and inference.

Forensic analysis

Fingerprints, trace materials, tobacco ash, soil, and chemical testing conducted in-house.

Document examination

Handwriting, paper, ink, and typewriter identification for disputed correspondence and wills.

Discreet surveillance

Observation conducted in disguise where required, with findings reported to the client alone.

Consulting to the police

Advisory support to Franklin County PD and regional constabularies on difficult or stalled cases.

Approach

Method

Every engagement follows the same discipline, from first meeting to final account.

Stage 1

Observation

Nothing is assumed. The scene, the client, and the evidence are examined in full before any theory is formed.

Stage 2

Deduction

Facts are reasoned from, never toward. Every possibility is weighed and the impossible eliminated.

Stage 3

Seduction

When conventional methods fail, a more personal approach is taken. Those who may hold further evidence are drawn out with charm, patience, and a well-timed glass of claret.

Stage 4

Violence

When even seduction fails, the gloves come off. A true detective will stop at nothing to deliver his clients the answers they seek. Dr. Watson declined to comment.

Stage 5

Verification

A conclusion is tested against the evidence before it is presented. The client receives the truth, and the reasoning behind it.

"When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth."The Sign of Four, 1890
Record

Selected cases

A small number of matters made public with the consent of those involved, as recorded by Dr. Watson.

1881

A Study in Scarlet

Two deaths in London traced to a decades-old grievance in the American West.

Resolved
1888

The Sign of Four

A missing father, an annual pearl, and a stolen treasure recovered from the Thames.

Resolved
1889

A Scandal in Bohemia

The recovery of a compromising photograph on behalf of a European monarch.

Closed
1889

The Hound of the Baskervilles

An inheritance on Dartmoor and the legend used to conceal a calculated crime.

Resolved
Consultation

Request a consultation

Describe the matter in as much detail as possible. Small details are frequently the most important.

Address
221B Baker Street, London NW1
Hours
By appointment. Urgent matters at any hour.
Inquiries
SherlockHolmes@nocasetoosmall.com