William John Burns (October 19, 1861 – April 14, 1932) was an American private investigator and law enforcement official. He was known as "America's Sherlock Holmes" and earned fame for having conducted private investigations into a number of notable incidents, such as clearing Leo Frank of the 1913 murder of Mary Phagan, and for investigating the deadly 1910 Los Angeles Times bombing conducted by members of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers. From August 22, 1921, to May 10, 1924, Burns served as the director of the Bureau of Investigation (BOI), predecessor to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and was educated in Columbus, Ohio. As a young man, Burns performed well as a Secret Service Agent and parleyed his reputation into the William J. Burns International Detective Agency, now a part of Securitas Security Services USA. A combination of natural ability as a detective combined with an instinct for publicity made Burns a national figure. His exploits made national news, the gossip columns of New York City newspapers, and the pages of detective magazines, in which he published "true" crime stories based on his exploits. Marriage and children Burns married Annie M. Ressler in 1880. The couple had six children. Burns' sons, Raymond J. and William Sherman also worked as detectives for the William J. Burns National Detective Agency. Los Angeles Times bombing The City of Los Angeles hired Burns to catch those responsible for the bombing of the Los Angeles Times building on October 1, 1910, killing 20 people. Revenge or anger was the suspected motive, as Times publisher Harrison Gray Otis was a staunch opponent of labor unions and the incident was similar to a nationwide series of dozens earlier but not-fatal bomb attacks that Burns had been investigating for the National Erector Association. After months of investigation, Burns's son Raymond and police officers from the Detroit and Chicago police departments arrested Jim McNamara and associate Ortie McManigal on April 14, 1911, in Detroit. Ironworkers Union secretary-treasurer John McNamara, Jim's brother, was arrested later that month in Indianapolis, Indiana. Extradited to Los Angeles, the brothers pleaded guilty to murder in the bombing. The MacNamara brothers were important members of the Ironwokers Union and the investigation implicated numerous other members of the union up to President Frank M. Ryan. Burns's investigation found the Ironworkers Union leadership knew