Family and early life Sherlock Holmes

the cover page of beeton s christmas annual issue contains holmes s first appearance in 1887 (a study in scarlet).

details sherlock holmes s life, except adventures in books, scarce in conan doyle s original stories. nevertheless, mentions of life , extended family paint loose biographical picture of detective.

an estimate of holmes s age in last bow places year of birth @ 1854; story, set in august 1914, describes him sixty years of age. parents not mentioned in stories, although holmes mentions ancestors country squires . in adventure of greek interpreter , claims grandmother sister french artist vernet, without further clarifying whether claude joseph, carle, or horace vernet. holmes s brother mycroft, 7 years senior, government official appears in adventure of greek interpreter , final problem , , adventure of bruce-partington plans , mentioned in adventure of empty house . mycroft has unique civil service position kind of human database aspects of government policy. lacks sherlock s interest in physical investigation, however, preferring spend time @ diogenes club.

holmes says first developed methods of deduction undergraduate; earliest cases, pursued amateur, came fellow university students. meeting classmate s father led him adopt detection profession, , spent 6 years after university consultant before financial difficulties led him accept john h. watson fellow lodger in 1881 (when first published story, study in scarlet, begins).

the 2 take lodgings @ 221b baker street, london, apartment @ upper (north) end of street, seventeen steps.