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1960 - 1980

Tuesday, 14 January 2020 14:42
1960 - 1980

 

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1960 - 1980

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Photo Courtesy Lt. William Bowen

Officer William Bowen

1960

Officers 1960-1

OFFICERS CONDUCTING AN INVESTIGATION 1960'S

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Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot

Officer Lawrence Barry seen here in a departmental ID card shot was in the Baltimore Park Police and when that agency merged with the Baltimore City Police around 1961 he joined the Baltimore Police Department and retired in the 1970's. Officer Lawrence Barry was an uncle of Detective Charlie Smoot Below Officer Lawrence Barry is seen wearing a vintage uniform complete with the old "bobby" type hats, 3 rd. issued badge.

THEGRUNT-E
COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Officer Robert DiStefano as the young grunt in 1962

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Photo courtesy Officer William Hough

Officer William Hough is seen here with cut on his face and a bloody uniform shirt after being the victim of an assult on a police officer. 

Sgt Charlie Barclay
circa 196o 

 Devider

AS 600-PAGE SURVEY RAPS CITY POLICE

RICHARD H LEVINE
The Sun (1837-1987); Jan 10, 1966;
pg. A1

Organized crime, place our terms of widespread
Police recruit standards down low…… page A9
By Richard Levine

The Baltimore Police Department has been closely examined and found to be seriously inadequate by the nation’s leading consulting firm specializing in police administration.

The 600 page report issued last night focuses severe criticism at the quality of leadership and management in the police department.

It points up many areas of critical deficiencies and levels both broad and detailed attacks on almost all aspects of police service, all phases of police administration and all divisions, bureaus, squads and specialized functions.

Reorganization Asked
It recommends an immediate, total reorganization of the department and immediate attention to some essential policing responsibilities that are most severely crippled by bad management practices.

It asserts that despite contrary opinion of the public, Baltimore is saddled with place and organization crimes of major proportions.

The report is the result of a $52,000 March to October study conducted by the field service division of the international Association of Chiefs of police.

Besides the dissection of the department problems, the report contains detailed recommendations for improvements.

Two Principal Concerns
The report bears down particularly hard on the top principal concerns of the Police Department – crime control and traffic control.

It engages in widespread faultfinding in both areas. The consultants recommend that the police department remain a state agency and that the governor retain its statutory power to appoint the Commissioner and his power to remove him from office misconduct for incompetency. Other major recommendations are these:

  1. The organization of the department according to functions with clear lines of authority and responsibility. Include is the elimination of the rank of inspector and chief inspector.
  2. The inauguration of an accurate, complete crime records system revision of beat patterns
  3. A total revision of the beat pattern to equal the workloads of men in patrol.
  4. The proper development of the planning and research division with a crime analyst unit and expanded use of data processing.
  5. The creation of a criminal investigation division for expert handling of all felonies and major vice cases from evidence gathering to preparation for trial.
  6. The implementation of the internal investigation unit – now only on paper – as the commissioners watchdog on the department, responsible for intelligent information on misconduct, corruption, abuse of authority and the activities of organized crime figures.

Urges Formal Procedures
7. The establishment of formal disciplinary procedures and a disciplinary board for the prompt proper handling of charges brought against officers from within the department or civilians.

  1. A formal system for airing grievances of uniformed and civilian employees of the department with the right to make formal grievances guaranteed by state law.
  2. Higher education, physical mental and medical standards for applicants to the force.
  3. A revision of the standard for rating candidates for promotion.
  4. The restriction of promotion to the top five candidates on a merit rating list.
  5. A serious police community effort to reduce the high automobile accident injury and fatality rate in the city with a special pedestrian safety program.
  6. Elimination of the present law which restricts candidates for the position of Commissioner to residents or businessmen in the city.
  7. A general increase in salaries and benefits including any bays, holidays, overtime pay, insurance benefits and uniform supplies.
  8. The construction of a new department headquarters building: the immediate elimination of northern district with its patrolling divided between Northwest and Northeastern: the abandonment of the northern district headquarters building as soon as the police Academy can be moved to a newly constructed department headquarters building: the eventual abolishment of the southern district and a abandonment of its headquarters building.

It also calls for a realistic attitude toward problem of vice and crime and a harder attack on these conditions and on the block as a source of “moral blight.”

Two subjects that have drawn much public interest recently are handled by recommendations that the Police Department relieve itself of responsibility for them.

The consultants believe that all towing matters, removal of illegally parked vehicles as well as vehicles and accidents, should be turned over to private contractors.

Sanitary Inspection
And it recommends that the city assume the task of sanitary inspections.

The consultants call for the abolishment of the auto theft squad, the pickpocket, hotel and V. I. P. Squad, the riot squad, the mounted sections horses, and the transfer of their functions elsewhere.

There are thousands of specific suggestions directed toward every subject from the meter maid’s manner to the length of the Espantoon.

Even as it urges an immediate program of reform, the report points out that the consultants while engaged in the study, were met with the kind of obstinate resistance that prevented improvements and progress in the department in the past.

“These recommendations will be of little value unless the administrative climate of the Police Department is changed,” the reporter says.

“Superior officers must accept the fact that the department needs improvement and must recognize their responsibilities and lifting the department from its content with the status quo and traditional concepts, to those of the modern, progressive and efficient department the community deserves.”

First Study in 25 Years
the report points out that this is the first comprehensive survey of the department in 25 years, that the reorganization plan suggest that in the previous report was never adopted and that they did department’s structure is virtually unchanged from that which existed in 1940. The report warns:

“It is to be hoped to that history does not repeat itself: restructuring the Baltimore Police Department is sound in importance only to improving the competence of its management.”

The consultants ordered the following guide to their own approach to the survey: “of this report is critical in nature, because in an effort of this type, the most intensive examinations are naturally made into existing weaknesses.

“Intentions of this criticism is that it be constructive: that it assists in improving the organization, personnel and practices of the Baltimore Police Department so that the people will receive effective police services consistent with democratic ideas.

“It should be remembered that the survey is directed toward all police activity and is not just a narrow search for faults. Thus it is consistent with the standards of objectivity.”

The criticism is of two types: that directed toward practices and policies that are not as effective as they should be, and exposure of major flaws that are so basic as to cripple the department. As late as this fall, the department walked on the implementation of two aspects of report that were considered to be important enough for immediate action.

The police Association consultant said that the recommendations on record management were presented in preliminary form to Commissioner Bernard J Schmidt and his inspector on September 21, 1965.

Final Report Presented
Several meetings were held to discuss the recommendations, the consultant said, and a final report was presented to the department on 20 October to enable the Department to inaugurate new reporting procedures by the start of the calendar year.

“Despite this, to date the department has taken no action whatsoever in preparation for a change in the present reporting procedures.”

“A second matter indicated similar dilatory handling.” Says the report.

On September 29, the report says, the police Commissioner was given to plans prepared by the I. A. C. P. For the establishment of an internal complaint investigation procedure.

These plans were made after conference had taken place with major McKeldin and Gov. Tawes. There were later conferences.

A Capt. was promoted to inspector, the report says, “reportedly to command the proposed new unit. The plans, however, has still not been implemented.”

What is required in Baltimore the report states, is “inspired, imaginative and indefatigable leadership in the police department and cooperation and support from the community and the state.

However, the consultant was described present leadership in a department in the following statements:

“Management competency is questionable.”

“Management sidesteps responsibilities.”

“Management fails to take strong stands, fails to plan for the future needs and fails to recognize the reality of poor procedures.”

“Supervision Misdirected”
“There is misdirection of the first line supervision – the practices of advancing or promoting personnel are antiquated and restrictive.”

“The system of evaluating personnel performance has been perverted.

“But management, even though cognizant of and dissatisfied with the use of the system, has failed to take meaningful corrective action.”

The report makes clear that under the present organizational structure the department’s chief inspector, George J. Murphy, is a “strong assistant Commissioner” who assumes and in ordinate share of the actual command and, therefore of the responsibility of the department.

Source of Difficulties
The report, where ever its intention turns, looks back at “management” and “the supervisors” to find the source of the difficulties. For instance: “demands for a civilian review board to oversee the conduct of force are not usually heard in those communities where the police agency operates an effective disciplinary program of its own.”

This statement is in a discussion of the internal investigation division IID. The unit that Commissioner Smit found an inspector for but, according to the report, has failed to organize.

The I. A. C. P. Went against its own previous position and recommending that the police department remain under state control.

Transfer Idea Discussed

In lengthy discussion of this topic of the consultants conclude that “competent police management can do an outstanding job under the present set-up.”

Primary reason for making a change, the report says, would be to avoid political control and interference, to satisfy desire for home rule or to escape financial burden imposed by the state.

The consultants found none of these factors present in Baltimore.

There is no popular moved to transfer control, they said, and in referendum the citizens of Baltimore have previously rejected taking control.

Legislation last year gave the city control of the police budget. Purchasing and disbursements. Moves that gave the city virtual financial control of the department, they continued.

As for Political Interference:

“External control of the department does not appear to be a major problem… Indeed, the present political climate in the city might prove such a move(transfer to city control) to be harmful.”

Further on:

“we have seen little evidence of machine politics in the operation of the Baltimore Police Department, although there are rather well – circulated rumors concerning the influence of certain promotions. Many of the derogatory facts of unwholesome political control are conspicuously absent in the city of Baltimore.

The I. A. C. P. Experts, probably too many people surprise, did not recommend any increase in the number of patrolman needed for crime patrol.

Repeatedly, however, the consultants complained that that the departments in accurate crime stats hamper attempts to determine such things as actual workloads, the level of crime or whether crime is increasing or decreasing.

However, by utilizing a short time, temporary, control system enough information was gathered to allow a new mapping of the beats to equalize the workload for patrolman.

The suggested shifts actually resulted in a surplus of 136 positions over actual minimum needs. At the same time, the report said, the police coverage and quality of protection would be improved.

Other Cities Compared

In terms of money and men, the report says the Baltimore compares favorably with other major cities in the nation.

The Police Department gets $27 million annually which represents 14% of the receipts from general property taxation – a per capita cost of $24.30.

Comparative cost figure for other cities are: Chicago $25.69: Washington $32.49: Los Angeles $22.41: Detroit $21.82: St. Louis $21.81: Philadelphia $21.25: Milwaukee $19.59: Cleveland $18.62 and Houston $11.74.

In terms of police and please per inhabitant, Baltimore ranks higher than any city in that group with an exception of Washington in terms of police employees per square mile Baltimore ranks fourth.

The consultant said that a further significant comparison was with the city’s Los Angeles and Milwaukee “regarded by some as among the best police departments in the country.”

The I. A. C. P. Found the Baltimore spends more and has a higher proportion of police employees than either of those cities.

The picture of what the city gives the department is far brighter, however, then what is returned.

Because of the garbled records the department’s performance in criminal convictions could not be computed. The report said, it did conclude, however, that only a relatively small percentage of persons who committed major crimes in the city are ever found guilty of the original charge.

On Traffic Control

As for traffic control, this second major area of responsibility “provides some insight on the departments of efficiency.”

The report contains this summary statement” “the traffic performance record of Baltimore Police Department is below recommended national standards in the categories of training, hit and run convictions, overall enforcement, selective enforcement, enforcement by nine full-time traffic officers, pedestrian enforcement and enforcement of drinking driving laws. The overall 1964 traffic performance of the department was evaluated at 32% of the recommended performance 100% level”

The I. A. C. P. Recommend restructuring the department into three functional bureaus – administrative, operations and services – each headed by a deputy Commissioner.

Under them would be other functionally organize units headed by men with new ranks – three chiefs, 12 directors and three deputy chiefs – all above the rank of Capt.

That use would head the division’s largest in personnel and authority – patrol, traffic and the new criminal investigation division.

All the way down to the organizational chart, services would be combined with like services.

Because of the intense difficulties in traffic control the I. A. C. P. Recommends the formation of a special community committee to strike at this problem with the new traffic division.

Equally disturbed to the consultants was the departments approach to criminal investigations.

The report speaks of lack of understanding of the investigation process in modern policing and the confusion among units as to the responsibility for investigations.

Furthermore, follow-up investigations, the consultants found were draining a great amount of time from preventative crime patrolling and taking sergeants away from their primary responsibilities of supervision.

The separate investigation unit would take over follow-up work in felonies and vice, thus adding professionalism to the task of freeing the patrol for its specialty.

“Not Satisfactory”
As for the present patrol assignments, the report turned them “Not satisfactory.”

It points, for example to the workload of the radio car 504 which was found to be the only 38% of that of a radio car 102.

The department was found to be guilty of other had patrol practices. Men are divided nearly equally among the three shifts each 24 hours even though the work load and crying frequently is not equally distributed.

A study showed that the greatest amount of work occurred during the 4 PM to midnight shift but that the largest proportion of patrolman were assigned to day shift.

In figures the 4 PM to midnight shift had 40% more work than a day shift and 17% fewer men.

Different Workloads
Similar inadequacies were found from district to district.

The one man patrol cars, the two men radio cars and foot patrolmen were found to be carrying workloads which were disproportionate to their total manpower strength.

Foot beats were found to be unrealistically large in many cases. Despite these illogical assignments the drain effectiveness the consultants found further that “a high proportion” of available manpower was assigned to a host of miscellaneous duties, and this “in the face of claimed that shortages of manpower to fill foot post.”

The discontinuance of the northern and southern police district, the consultant said, would further increase patrol efficiencies and free extra men for the streets by eliminating duplication of non-patrol assignments.

“The presence of the district station is in itself no deterrent to crime” a very small percentage of all police services originate with a complaints appearance at a station,” the report says.

Not only did the consultants find men enough to patrol Baltimore’s streets, they also found there were enough patrol sergeants to do adequate supervision. Outside of the patrol, supervisory ratios provided another kind of problem.

For instance it was found that there were twice as many detective Sgt. is needed The supervision of the 154 detective patrolman. The report recommends cutting the complement of 49 sergeants in half.

Beside the detectives, the homicide Bureau, Hotel squad, narcotics squad and states attorney unit was found to be “top-heavy with supervisors.”

And yet with all these supervisors, lack of supervision was an important complaint of the report.

The problem, “questionable selection process; failure to use a supervisory probationary period; failure to provide adequate supervisory training: excessive familiarity with subordinates and lack of bearing” and several other reasons.

Along with the lack of supervision, the consultants found a lack of effective control from the Commissioner which they particularly blame on the organizational structure and partially one lack of staff supervision.

The consultant said the apparent intent of the organization scheme is to give the Commissioner administrative functions and the chief inspection operational functions.

The report says this system makes the chief inspector “a strong assistant Commissioner” and quotes a textbook on this situation: “at best a single assistant chief accomplices tasks that are properly the duties of an executive officer or adjutant: the worst he isolates the chief of the department and takes over policy decisions without which the department head cannot be chief in fact and becomes sort of a “grandvizer” to which all ranks must bow in order to have their request granted.”

Responsibilities Shared
The survey team labeled the Baltimore system as “defective” because responsibilities from management are not clearly fixed but are shared.

“The final result is that the Commissioner is held responsible in practice by the governor and by the public for all the activities of the department, but is insulated and prevented from being an executive in fact.”

Because of the lack of staff inspections, the report said, Commissioner Smit must accept reports on performance of duty from those who are personally charged with the responsibility for the duty.

There is no way for the Commissioner to ensure that the line commanders are properly performing their duties.

The report says that the most singular recent example of what this lack of real information can lead to was the commissioners lack of knowledge of the faulty crime reporting procedures until outside sources disclose them publicly with the resultant wave of unfavorable publicity.

“Even an outsider unschooled in police work could detect something was wrong with the crime reporting and were courting as practiced by the Baltimore Police Department.”

The imperfect recording of crime incidents, the report says, was not the fault of the investigating officers and sergeants, lieutenants, captains and top administrators were aware of the practices and permitted them.

On December, 1964 after the police crime records were publicly questioned, a thick report was transmitted to governor Tawes by the Police Department in which nearly every officer above the rank of Lieut. claim that there was no evidence to indicate that they complete recording was not being practiced.


Very Little Praise
In a mass of criticism, very little praise comes forth.

The consultants do command the public relations efforts of Capt. Norman J. Schleigh, head of the police training academy, any attempts made by Thomas J. Miller, former personnel director, in areas of improving the process of selecting officer candidates and in trying to activate formal grievance procedures.

Among the miscellaneous services that receive strong criticism is the medical division and the police positions.

The consultants claim that physicians exercise more control over a high sickness rate in the department, an average of more than 12 days a man every year for the past two decades.

The consultant said that a combined sickness and injury rate of eight days or more a year as an average for the department should prompt the administration of the department to either improve control over misuse of sick leave or else and prove a genuinely poor health record.

In Baltimore’s case both approaches must be used, said the report.

Reducing the sick leave to a tolerable average of eight days a year would be the equivalent of a gain of 90 men on the force, the consultants figured.

Would Replace Doctors
“If physicians on the staff are not sympathetic to more stringent control procedures, they should be replaced with doctors who are willing to assert their responsibility and authority, “said the report. The positions were also said to have no well-developed medical standards for recruits and for accepting candidates of questionable physical fitness.

There are a number of miscellaneous criticisms of major importance in many areas.

The consultant thought the K-9 Corps was poorly assigned and wasting time patrolling hospitals.

A spot check revealed that citizens call for help were more probably answered on the regular administration telephone lines than through the emergency numbers.

Sgt Charlie Barclay circa 196o


Devider


WHAT ARE POLICEMAN MADE OF?

Don’t credit me with the mongrel prose: it has many parents-at least 420,000 of them: Policemen.

A Policeman is a composite of what all men are, mingling of a saint and sinner, dust and deity.
Gulled statistics wave the fan over the stinkers, underscore instances of dishonesty and brutality because they are “new”. What they really mean is that they are exceptional, unusual, not commonplace.
Buried under the frost is the fact: Less than one-half of one percent of policemen misfit the uniform. That’s a better average than you’d find among clergy!
What is a policeman made of? He, of all men, is once the most needed and the most unwanted. He’s a strangely nameless creature who is “sir” to his face and “fuzz” to his back
He must be such a diplomat that he can settle differences between individuals so that each will think he won.
But…If the policeman is neat, he’s conceited; if he’s careless, he’s a bum. If he’s pleasant, he’s flirting;if not, he’s a grouch.
He must make an instant decision which would require months for a lawyer to make.
But…If he hurries, he’s careless; if he’s deliberate, he’s lazy. He must be first to an accident and infallible with his diagnosis. He must be able to start breathing, stop bleeding, tie splints and, above all, be sure the victim goes home without a limp. Or expect to be sued.
The police officer must know every gun, draw on the run, and hit where it doesn’t hurt.He must be able to whip two men twice his size and half his age without damaging his uniform and without being “brutal”. If you hit him, he’s a coward. If he hits you, he’s a bully.
A policeman must know everything-and not tell. He must know where all the sin is and not partake.
A policeman must, from a single strand of hair, be able to describe the crime, the weapon and the criminal- and tell you where the criminal is hiding.
But…If he catches the criminal, he’s lucky; if he doesn’t, he’s a dunce. If he gets promoted, he has political pull; if he doesn’t, he’s a dullard. The policeman must chase a bum lead to a dead-end, stake out ten nights to tag one witness who saw it happen-but refused to remember.
The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy and a gentleman.
And, of course, he’d have to be genius….For he will have to feed a family on a policeman’s salary.

By:  Paul Harvey

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Photo courtesy Officer William Hough

GRADUATION CERTIFICATE WILLIAM J. HOUGH
         January 14, 1964
Officer William Hough seen below on foot patrol
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Photo courtesy Officer William Hough
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Photo courtesy Sgt. George T. Owens

Officer George T. Owens's seen here at the Civic Center (the patrolman on the right hand side in the jacket) working crowd control when the Beatles came to Baltimore.  September 13, 1964
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Photo courtesy Sgt. George T. Owens

Officer George T. Owens seen here patrolling his post. 1964

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Photo courtesy Sgt. George T. Owens

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Officer Joseph B. Huffman 1965

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Photo Courtesy James Redding

Lieutenant Clyde Redding (far right) BCPD Officer of the Year 1966

along with the BCFD officer of the year 1966

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Courtesy Wally Brenton
He served in the Southeast District 1967-1973
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Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

 Baltimore Police Officers and their wives listen to Govenor Marvin Mandel who promised raises and told them to just have patience

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 Honor Guard 1968

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Photo courtesy Rhonda Owens

Officer Wiley Melvin Owens Jr.

Badge #2928

Later promoted to Detective and assigned ISD

Passed away December 1, 1973

He was an honest, dedicated, faithful member of the force who served the community valiantly.
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 Officer Wiley Owens Jr. was offered a $100.00 bribe to change his testimony in a drunk driver case by defense attorney Jackson Dulaney Pennington ,but Officer Owens maintained his integrity and promptly reported the incident. November 13, 1969

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 Photo courtesy Rhonda Owens

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 Sergeant Francis Max Gutierrez

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COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

SGTDAY-E

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

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COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

Sergeant Gutierrez receiving his certificate of promotion to Sergeant from Police Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau 12/26/1968
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Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
Blast from the past: Officer Howard "Bud" Lindsay Officer John Scales and Bob Fisher
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Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
Ellis "Ditty" Baldwin

Notice the word "City" isn't on the truck! City, wasn't removed from "Baltimore City Police" until the mid, to late 70's as the Mayor at the time was transitioning Baltimore into a Tourist town, Building the Inner Harbor, and wanted to remove the tough sound of City from Baltimore, but that all came much later than this truck. This was a sign of thngs to come.

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Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
The "Command Chair" at 1050 S. Broadway. Notice the mirror and fish eye mounted on the window frame. Very useful to detect sneaking bad guys, and duty officers.- When the uniform cap was worn on the truck, it was wise to remove the inside wire in the top portion, (Known by some as the stylish "50 Mission Crush" of the hat) Otherwise, the wind would blow it off and out of the truck), Mine (Michael Roselle) was run over by some wise guy in a Buick. The guy was last seen driving east on Fayette from Central laughing.
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Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay
John Scales and Bud Lindsay with a recovered possible 81mm mortar round or a 122mm rd.
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Courtesy Det.Mark Lindsay
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Courtesy Det. Mark Lindsay

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Photo courtesy Officer William hough

Front cover of the 1969 departmental phone book

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Original Certificate of Retirement

John N. McCormick

25 years of dedicated service

1943-1969

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Flag draped casket of Officer Donald Sager

April 24, 1970

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Shriner's circus detail 1970's

with one of the circus performers

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The following several pictures are at the Baltimore City Fair in the late 1970's

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MORE POLICE TRAINING SET

KIRK SCHARFENBERG

The Sun (1837-1989); Jun 25, 1968; pg. C8

MORE POLICE TRAINING SET

Schooling of All Recruits

In State to Rise 50%

Ocean City, June 24-The executive secretary of the Maryland Police Training Commission said today that by this fall the length of the mandatory training period for recruits on police forces around the State will be increased by 50 per cent.

Robert L. Van Wagoner told members of the Maryland Municipal League, meeting at the Commander Hotel here that the planned increase in, hours of training from 160 to 240 will make the Maryland program among the most thorough in the country.

He also told the group that, within a year, officers entering training schools run by his commission will have to pass intelligence and stability tests.

Determining Tests

Mr. Van Wagoner said the commission is now working with the University of Maryland to determine what specific tests will be used.

State law, he said, requires all men recruited by police forces throughout the State since June 1, 1967, to pass a training course approved by the commission.

The course must be completed within a year of the officer's appointment to the police force.

Mr. Van Wagoner said he is "reasonably certain" that there have been violations of the law "though ignorance." But, he added, a new State program, providing $21,000,0110 to local police departments and requiring compliance with the commission's standards, should aid in enforcement of the requirements.

Has Not Used Power

He noted that the commission, composed of leading law enforcement officials in the' State, the attorney general and the president of the University of Maryland, has not yet exercised its authority to set standards for veteran police officers.

He termed this the most difficult aspect of the commission's 1 work, but said that the standards will be set.

Mr. Van Wagoner added, "the large portion of police officers 1 in the Slate have never had an ounce of training and have never shot a gun, except on July 4th.

"Ninety-five percent of the police officers want this training,” he said, estimating that the initial course for veteran officers would probably last a week.

Small Communities

Ile noted that the increased standards for admission to the training schools, which already require a high school education and good character references, may work a hardship on small communities which have difficulty paying their police forces even now.

He suggested, therefore, that these communities use the State money they receive to improve their police salaries to hire qualified men

"It's no good to have equipment if you don't have the qualified men to operate it," he said.

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Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot

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Photo courtesy Det. Charlie Smoot

 Officer Lawrence Barry ( white shirt) is seen here attending a retirement party.

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Officer Vernon G. Barclay

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Officer Charles Thompson (left)

Officer Clyde Redding (right)
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Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

Sergeant John Jackman escorts a prisoner from a disturbance at western High School

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Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough
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Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

Officer John Grosskopf "Hero" saved several children from drowning 

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Photo courtesy Officer Bill Hough

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Black Panther raid 1700 blk. N. Aisquith St.

April 30, 1970

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Photo Courtesy Lieut. William Bowen

Lieutenant William Bowen

1972

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Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch
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Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch
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Courtesy of Officer Dick Busch

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Sergeant Robert Wilson working Druid Hill Park 1970's in a Dodge Aspen

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Wilson
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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Wilson

LAWS & LIBERTY

The Sun (1837-1989); Sep 8, 1974; pg. AA29

LAWS & LIBERTY

The increasing pressure of traffic particularly in the downtown sections of our great Babylon’s and Gomorrah, has at least one laudable effect: it makes the police happy. Naturally pedantic, and trained, the pedagogues, in the doctrine that all human beings are precisely alike and maybe handle stalks of weed, BB shot Hall at the stockyard, they delight in the opportunity to make and enforce ever more complex and nonconsensual regulations.

The other day I read in the Sunpaper that so many motorists were herded for trial in a traffic court that it took three judges to dispose of them... Obviously, the police, like Judge Elbert H. Gary, have no need to wait for heaven; they enjoyed here and now. What could be more charmingly to their taste than a body of laws which fills two courtrooms suffocation every day, and keeps three judges leaping and tugging back fire engine hoses the situation is made the more intoxicating by the Attacked that 9/10 of the criminals or persons who would not otherwise fall into the toils – the traffic regulation tap whole new categories of victims...

The United railways [which ran the public transportation system] has ably seconded the police in this gradual disciplining and regimentation of the people of Baltimore... Today riding on the cars of uniting railways is indistinguishable from running a gantlet. The passenger is no longer a customer, nor even an individual; he is simply an anonymous unit in an endless chain – a sort of sausage fed into an insatiable and impersonal maw. His desires are no more regarded than if he were a corpse. The instant he steps of a board a car the cogs and levers of the machine grip him, and thereafter until he escapes, he is a sleeve. He must deposit his fair at a certain time and place; he must move as ordered; if he happens to be smoking he is in for a sharp reprimand. All his old rights now reduce themselves to one: he may get off if he doesn’t like it, and be damned... Meanwhile, the company hires in psychology at $50,000 a year and expense to improve its public relations – that is, to diminish the climber that goes on against it all the time. No wonder there is a climber. Don’t the halls in the slaughterhouse wheel?

The Evening Sun March 23, 1925

it takes a very powerful effort of the will and imagination for any reflective man, in these last days of the Republic, to be proud that he is an American; those who seem to be the proudest of it, indeed are precisely the worst cads and ignoramuses on view. But all the while it remains relatively easy to be proud of being a Marylander, for here in this little state, stuck forlornly between the serfs of the North and the slaves of the South, there remains in active being a great deal of the genuine liberty of the braver and more expansive day, and what is better still, there is not slightest sign that in so far as the people of this state can control the matter, it is distinguishing. Period.

Maryland is one of the few free states left in the American Commonwealth – almost, indeed, the only state remaining in which the guarantees of the Bill of Rights has served the roguery of legislators and imbecility of judges...

This respect for human rights – this quick resentment of every appearance of official bullying – remains alive in Maryland because of the survival of an older tradition of freedom. But perhaps that tradition itself survives because of something that is too often forgotten, to wit, that in Maryland the jury in a criminal case is a judge of the law as well as the facts. It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of this constitutional safeguard. On the one hand, it instantly draws teeth of the foolish and oppressive laws… And all the other hand, it makes it almost impossible for the police to make law on their own book, and railroad innocent men to prison, as has happened so often in California and other Western states, and of late even in New England…

Liberty is a great deal less esteemed in America that used to be; the other day the American ambassador to Rome was deriding it as archaic. But here in Maryland it is still respected, and that single fact is worth more than all the sugar refineries, Tanneries, guano factories and other such great dunes that go-getters will bring to the state between this day in the day of judgment.

The Evening Sun, July 31, 1923

This is one of the few American states which, in the state courts, constitutional guarantees of the citizen are jealously guarded. Unlike New York, Pennsylvania, and most of the Western states, we have no laws limiting the free play of opinion; and Marylander is at liberty to set forth his honest sentiments, in private or in public, without interference by the police no so-called soapbox or, however extravagant and idiotic, has ever been sent to prison in Maryland.

The Evening Sun, September 22, 1924

Eugene Grannan, who died a week ago, was one of the town characters of Baltimore at the end of the last century, antique His peculiar color and charm to the end… He was… A man almost ideally fitted for his job [of police magistrate]. For years a professional detective, working for the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, he knew familiarly most of the petticoats working in these parts. More common a new policeman, and could read their peculiarity innocent minds. Yet more, he was a man combined great shrewdness and an expansive sentimentality in a way that is very rare to this world. Finally, he had a vast untapped for lawyers, and scarcely less for the law…

Grannan first came into public notice by a devastating attack upon the old system of intrigue which for years had made criminal justice a mockery in Baltimore. He was then sitting at the Western police station on Pine Street, and his bailiwick included the nearby red light district. The girls in that district were frequently in conflict with the police, and so most of them got themselves protectors of political influence – naturally enough, a worthless and the last class of men. Sometimes these protectors will get drunk and beat the girls. The police would then lock them up to prevent murders, but in the morning they were commonly turned loose without punishment.

But soon after Grannan went up on the bench such as scoundrel appeared before him, and, in violation of the immemorial practice, he called for the witnesses and proceeded to trial. The evidence was plain enough. The fellow had got drunk and given his girl a beat. He now stood before the bar with Democratic ward leader of that vicinity on one side of him, and the group of gaudy brethren of his craft on the other. He plainly expected the usual humane treatment. Disdaining a jury trial, he elected to be tried by Grannan. Grannan found him guilty and sentenced him to two years in the house of corrections…

This episode made Grannan a town celebrity, and the notion got around that he was a crusader against politicians, and eager to get all of them into prison. He was, of course, nothing of the sort. On the contrary, he knew very well that politicians serve a very useful purpose, especially of the more petty varieties, and he made constant use of them in his work...

His attitude toward policeman was much the same. He knew that 9/10 of them was simpleminded honest men, but he also knew how much professional prejudice: their thoughts… He was thus very suspicious of constabulary testimony, and seldom accepted it unless it was supported by disinterested witnesses…

The life of such a man, it seems to me, is immensely valuable to the community he lives in, and he ought to be remembered. There was nothing brilliant about Grannan… But he had qualities that were of high social work and excellence, and chance threw him into a position where they could be utilized effectively and made to yield permanent benefits. He founded a whole school of police magistrates, obviously better than the old school… And his influence, I believe, as it towered to this day.

What made him attractive personally was his pawky and sardonic humor. He greatly enjoyed his work, despite the foul smells of his court and the daily contact with wretchedness in all its form, and always kept it on a level of amiable tolerance. Time and time again I have seen him dissipate misery with a jocosity. He loved to scare minor offenders horribly, and then turn them loose. Once an old German was before him, Charles was quarreling with his wife of 40 years. Both parties will repentant and ashamed. Grannan solemnly tried the old man, sentenced and 25 years in the penitentiary, and then, after the cops had revived him since him is way, his wife on his arm. He ordered the case to them from the books and asked the reporters not to mention it…

The only time I ever saw him show anger on the bench was one in E. Baltimore St. missionary came before him, charging an ancient Russian Jew with assault. The missionary, it appeared, had dragged the Jews grandson into his gospel all, and tried to convert him to Methodism. Grannan, usually very dignified on the fence, lost his temper and gave the missionary a dreadful cursing. Then he turned to the Jew. “I am glad you feed him,” he said, “but don’t do it again. The law is an ass, but it has two years. The next time he tackles your grandson, bring him here.”

The Evening Sun, September 6, 1926

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Baltimore City initiates a Gun Buy Program August 1974

Major John Kollmann stands amid some of the 1,000 guns that the City bought at $50.00 each from City residents, no questions asked, as an incentive to rid the City of guns. 

OFF WARREN TODD CD
COURTESY SERGEANT BERNIE WEHAGE

Officer Warren Todd Central District R/C 102 on a business check at Harley's,
Liberty & Fayette Sts.

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BALTIMORE POLICE STRIKE 1974

A dark time in the history of the Baltimore Police Department.

The first police strike in a major City since 1912.

A Civil War, BPD Officers vs. BPD Officers.

The strike became a part of our history and for all law enforcement.
It was not a proud moment for the Baltimore Police Department.

Many BPD officers were in a state of conflict, do the Right thing or fight
for a cause they truly believed in. No one won in this conflict.

Scars were left and will be a long time healing.

They will, indeed, heal. May this never happen again in our history.
May our ranks stay united as a brotherhood.
Officers working together for the benefit of all.
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Officer Paul Bach standing next to a 1974 Plymouth in the SED parking lot

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Officer William Hackley(L) and Officer Joe Snyder NWD detailed to the Afram Festival

1977

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Officers in UNITY  1978
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Courtesy Lt.Tom Douglas
Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau appoints Officer Tom Douglas to Police Agent June 15, 1977

(Below) Commissioner Pomerleau with Newly appointed Agent Tom Douglas with his parents Sue and Doug proudly looking on.
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Courtesy Lt.Tom Douglas

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COURTESY OFFICER JOE WICZULIS

Photograph of Colonel “Dick” Francis that was given to Officer Marion Wiczulis for Good Luck (above)
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COURTESY OFFICER JOE WICZULIS

During the Custom Motorcycle Show held March 1977, at the Timonium Fair Grounds, Officer Marion S. Wiczulis of the Enforcement Section of the Traffic Division and his fiancée,Paula, devoted his spare time to display one of the Department's motorcycles and also helped promote motorcycle safety in conjunction with members of the Baltimore County Police Department.

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Major Patricia Mullen, Sergeant Mercedes Rankin, Carol Channing 1978

THE BALTIMORE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S GANGBUSTERS

June 1975

Front Row: Robert Ackerman, SWD; Raymond Gillespie, WD; Richard Boronyak, NWD; Thomas Heathcoate, IID; William Hausner, NED; Michael Andrew, SWD; Martin Hanna, SWD; Leonard Willis, CID; Second Row: Robert Dapp, NED; Anthony Collini, ND; Lawrence Banks, Youth; Gary Childs, CID; Anthony Rinaldi, CD; Clayton Wright, SED; James Griffin, WD; Charles Cichon, NED; Back Row: Colonel Wilbur C. Miller; George Seltzer, WD; William Arnett, Youth; Daniel Markowski, CD; Donald Farley, Youth; Joseph Powell, CID; Robert Thomas, Tac.; Fred Oster, Youth; James Gilbert, CID; Police Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau.

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BALTIMORE POLICE NEWSLETTER

Detective Julius Neveker

December 1978

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President Jimmy Carter, Major Regis Rafensberger,
Major Ron Mullen, Commissioner Bishop Robinson 1979

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Officers helping victim

motor pool

MOTOR POOL OFFICE

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

37862_1338264781341_1372786638_30793974_5944080_n.jpgBrian_Beauchamp01.jpgPhoto courtesy Officer Brian Beauchamp

 Brian W. Beauchamp graduated academy class 70-2 on July 2, 1970, and was assigned to the Northern District, where he remained until he left the department July 11, 1973, and moved to Michigan for family reasons. He started with the Shiawassee County Sheriff's Department in Corunna, MI and retired as a DET/SGT in December 1997Brian_Beauchamp02.jpgPhoto courtesy Officer Brian Beauchamp

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Photo courtesy Brian Beauchamp

Life after the BPD

cadet1.jpgCourtesy Officer John Brazil

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Courtesy Officer John Brazil

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Photo courtesy Gary Provenzano

Departmental Accident Shop# 9031

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Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

Sergeant William Staley & Al Bowling celebrating the Sergeant's Birthday (Below) Sergeant Staley enjoys a piece of Birthday Cake 1976

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Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon

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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

 Officer Kenneth S. Peach receiving his Sergeant promotion certificate from Police Commissioner Pomerleau

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 Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Kenneth Peach hard at work

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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach stops a moment for this photograph

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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach diligently working on a report for the Police Commissioner
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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

Sergeant Peach and his wife after receiving his promotion to Lieutenant

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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer

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Photo courtesy: Mary Beth (Peach) Wasmer
Lieutenant Kenneth Peach in the Armory Unit

This shot of Lieutenant Peach is probably the most memorable photograph of him etched into everyone's mind. Every visit to the Armory Unit you would find him at his desk thinking and working on some project or working on a gun.  He put dedication and pride into his job.

He retired from the department and then passed away very suddenly on February 11, 2007 suffering from cancer. His service to the department is immeasurable and it Honored the Department.

Bill Gordon 1977

Photo Courtesy Sgt. William Gordon
Officer William Gordon 1977

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Photo courtesy Lt. Robert Wilson
Commissioner Donald D. Pomerleau promoting Sergeant Robert Wilson to
the rank of Lieutenant on December 21, 1978. Lt. Wilson with
his wife Lynn and daughters Jessica and Betty Lynn are proud of their dad.

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Bobby Ackison
Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Officer Al Diggs, Don Hoppe, Bob Gains

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Courtesy Lt. Tom Douglas

Lt Drexel Harwood Burrett 1975
Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Deputy Commissioner Harwood Burritt presents Lt. John Drexel a retirement plaque for his 23 years of service.
(Below) Retiring Lieutenant John Drexel stands at the podium with his wife Faye at his retirement party June 1975

Lt Drexel wife 1975
Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

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Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Captain R.L.Connely giving Lt. John Drexel his retirement certificate

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Photo courtesy Christina Bohli, John Drexel's daughter

Lt. John Drexel being congratulated on his retirement while his daughter Christina looks on

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The first row, left to right: Inspector Clarence Kelly, General George Gelston, Inspector George Deuchler. Deputy Commissioner Ralph Murdy.

Second row, left to right: Colonel Richard "Dickie" Taylor, Colonel "Box" Harris. Deputy Commissioner Wade Poole. Inspector Frank J. Battaglia, Inspector Thomas "Tom" Keyes, Captain G. Gordon Gang. Third row left to right: First position unknown to me. Inspector

Frank Deems. Third position unknown to me. Last rows sort of combine. The man with the glasses, peeking out above Box Harris, is Inspector Clarence German. The gentleman in the suit, directly behind Wade Poole I believe is Captain Anthony Nelligan of the Crime Lab. The man directly behind Frank Battaglia is Inspector August Gribbin.

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Officer Zawadski, Officer Pat Kirby, Officer K. Council

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Photo courtesy Lieut. Robert Oros

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Sergeant George Freeman
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 COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

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COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

Sergeant Gutierrez receiving his certificate of promotion to Lieutenant from Police Commissioner Frank J. Battaglia 12/18/1974


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COURTESY JOSEPH GUITERREZ

DDP1-E

COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Donald Skippy Shanahan
COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

 Colonel Donald "Skippy" Shanahan
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COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

Pension party for Officer McKenzie and Lt. Lorenz.  

Captain George Klanders, Deputy Commissioner Battaglia, and Captain John Barnold


Major DiStefano

 COURTESY MAJOR ROBERT DiSTEFANO

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Devider color with motto

 

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll

Published in Honesty

Espantoon

Tuesday, 14 January 2020 07:23
Espantoon


Espantoon

Espantoon Info/History

Webster's Third Edition: "An Espantoon In Baltimore, a policeman's stick" We would like to start out by saying we collect Nightsticks, Espantoons, Batons, Truncheons, Billy Clubs Etc. - If you have one for sale, or donation let us know as we are interested.  For what might be obvious reasons we particularly like Baltimore style sticks, aside from their being the sticks carried by our brothers they also show a progression not just in what we carried, or had made, but what the department had made for us. While we like Baltimore sticks, we collect them all, from any state in the US to any country in the world. We hope to start a Baltimore Police Museum and would like to have as many we can to show what police have used for years to protect themselves and the public. Initially, it could be a rolling museum, and they will be used to show the differences over the years, as well to show how they wear, due to their having been carried everywhere with an officer over his or her career. As for the Museum, Commissioner Batts has promised us the old Headquarters Museum again, so as soon as possible we will be trying to get back into that museum, and able to show off our history to the public. 

 

burrell Barrell

Woodworkers that Turned Baltimore Espantoons
1939 / 2007

1939 / 1957 – Rev W. Gibbs McKenney - Made BPD Issue - Sold to Howard Uniform - 10,000 hickory 2,000 redwood over 20 yrs

1957 / 1977 – Rev. John D.  Longenecker - Made BPD Issue - Sold to Howard Uniform - 10,000 hickory 2,000 redwood over 20 yrs

1955 / 1979 – Carl Hagen - Made BPD Issue & his own Stick - Sold to Howard Uniform and Officers - 2.000 various wood types over 24 yrs

1974 / 1977 – Edward Bremer - Made his own Stick – Sold to Officers - 300 various wood types over 3 yrs

1977 / 2007 – P/O Joe Hlafka - Made his own Stick - Sold to Officers and Police Supply Shops - 10,000 various wood types over 37 yrs

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What makes an Espantoon and Espantoon? The Espantoon: A Private Club?

We might have the answer that will satisfy the age old question! What Makes a Baltimore Officer's Nightstick an Espantoon. We could just go by Webster's version, in which by definition of 3rd edition, defines the Espantoon as follows:

"In Baltimore; a Policeman's club" - There but for a more realistic and detailed answer, based on more than 30 years of carrying an Espantoon, using one, seeing them used, and studying them through photos, in person, and conversation. Retired Detective Kenny Driscoll has been able to answer the questions with a new answer that up until Ken found it, it had not been thought of or realized as to what makes an Espantoon, an Espantoon.

Why a Nightstick in the hands of any police officer other than a Baltimore "City" Police Officer, is a nightstick and will remain a nightstick until it is placed in the hands of a Baltimore city officer, and as if by magic the very second the nightstick is placed into the hands of a city officer it becomes an Espantoon. People have ascertained that it is merely a name as if calling it something different makes it different. Det Driscoll says it is much more than a name, calling it solid gold wouldn't make it solid gold, but, changing it from the hands of say a Baltimore City Officer to the hands of a Baltimore County Officer will, in fact, change an Espantoon to a Nightstick.

Ken like many have been trying to figure out what makes an Espantoon, an Espantoon, and it wasn't until while researching the subject for the Baltimore Police Historic Society to add to an exhibit in the Museum downtown, that he came across an article on the subject and in it the reporter asked the following question, a question that remained unanswered by the reporter in his article. Did Ken have the answer, as a kid, Ken listened to a lot of music, and there was a song by The Steve Miller Band that had a line Ken used to use when asked a question that he didn't want to, or didn't know the answer to. The line was, "The answer to everyone's question is usually found from within." So when he read the reporters' questions, he rephrased them a little further, where the reporter asked about an out of state officer driving through Baltimore with departmental issued locked in the trunk of his car. Would his stick become an Espantoon as he made his way through the City Limits? The answer would be, "No!" But, what if that same officer was to have flagged down one of our 20-Year veteran "City" Officers, a guy that was about to retire, and somehow the young officer was able to talk the retiring veteran into a trade. He opens his trunk, grabs his baton, the two make the swap. The young officer has been training by his agency in baton training and plans on taking this Baltimore treasure to work with him, where he'll be able to carry it for the next 20 years of his career. Does that young officer now process an Espantoon? Most of us would be surprised to hear, the second they make the exchange, that 20 years Baltimore stick in the hands of an out of jurisdiction officer, is no longer an Espantoon. 

10 July 1979 Espantoon 72

I have heard stories of city guys giving their Espantoon's to family members that have become County officers and hearing the county officer call it an Espantoon or a family member of the city police joining the county police, and he gives his relative his Espantoon, would the county still have an Espantoon, and again the answer would be "No!" As it turns out to better answer the question, Ken needed to have a kick-start of the reporter's questions, and as long as each of these officers followed their training, the nightstick is only and Espantoon in the hands of a Baltimore "City" Officer because of the "Barrel Head." Through conversations held with the guys that turned the Espantoon on the wood lathes, as well as old-timers that used them for self-protection, and or to protect those in need of an officer to protect them, hearing stories from these old-timers of only seeing a few minor changes over the years. When asked about the changes Ken was told in the early 70s, the sticks were made a little bigger than years prior, and around the same time, a swivel was added to the thong, making it easier to spin the stick, and possible to spin the stick for longer periods of time. Speaking of spinning the stick; I was told to spin the stick had multiple purposes, first it showed those wanting to make trouble that the officer had skills with the stick which more often than not often prevented anyone from wanting to mess with that officer. Spinning the stick also created a personal space situation, in which people knew not to get too close to the officer as it could cause them to inadvertently get hit by the stick. In firearms training they used to say, nothing stops trouble like the sound of, "racking a shotgun." Ken used to say this was the equivalent of racking a shotgun, but also had a way of entertaining kids. Some officers called it making the stick dance. Knowing the nomenclature of the stick helps, so we'll include that information below in a picture of a Joe Hlafka stick that Ken painted so the reader would understand better. the actual stick used in this article can be found in the Baltimore Police Museum downtown. 

ESPANTOON NOMENCLATURE72

The Blue portion of the Espantoon is mistaken most often as the handle of the stick, This is actually 
the striking end, it is called a Barrel Head, this too most likely comes as the result of an error
As in most Blunt force weapons, the striking end is called  Burl Head.  In the Tomahawk 

Sometimes something as simple as looking into the old General Orders and rule books can be telling, my favorite is something I think makes Baltimore's Nightstick into an Espantoon, copy pasted directly from the department's GO's now called Policies, specifically Policy 1111 - BATONS / IMPACT WEAPONS... Under Espantoon we find the following; Policy #1111 - BATONS / IMPACT WEAPONS... Under the heading or title Espantoon, it is the fifth title down under DEFINITIONS and reads as follows    Espantoon — Wooden baton between 22-25 inches in length, with the striking end of the baton being between 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inches in diameter, and the grip end being 1 3/8 inches in diameter. This baton has color restrictions and shall only be coated in an Oak, Ash, Maple, Hickory or Rosewood finish. Decorations are prohibited. Looking at the aforementioned info regarding measurements we see the following line - "the striking end of the baton being between 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inches in diameter, and the grip end being 1 3/8 inches in diameter "  So if we look close we'll see we have a striking end between 1-1/2" - 1-3/4" in diameter... while the Handle/Grip end is 1-3/8" in diameter... so the "Striking End" is at a minimal 1/8" to 3/8" larger than the Handle/Grip end. Meaning the "Striking End," is the larger end of the Baltimore Espantoon or nightstick, the end that is often mistaken as the handle, is in fact by order the striking end.

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mistaken as the handle, is in fact by order the striking end.

Nomenclature to the Espantoon

Nomenclature of the Espantoon

Looking at the BLUE Barrel Head or Burl-Head above we can see how in the upper photo, the picture of the Baltimore Espantoon, just how easily the striking end could be mistaken for the stick's handle. Looking at the Pictures below, we can see that by paying attention to what we are doing we can carry the Espantoon in a way that keeps the barrel-Head at our ready, It is always in a way that we can grab it with the weak hand, and have the barrel-head where we need it, just in case we have to used for our protection.

. 

ESP means to Carry at the ready labled 72i

NOTE; We included a few Non-Baltimore Police pics just to see how other agencies carry their batons, nightsticks, etc. and how when you carry it the way we carry ours, before long when you see others carrying them upside down, and backward, it kinda jumps out at us. This will provide a nice educational moment for those that might be interested and maybe a little humor for those that don't get it or understand.  

esp an toon EDITED

The letter "A" is marking off the portion of the stick known as the Barrel head. Notice how much cleaner the middle of the Barrel head is when compared to the shaft, especially the part of the shaft we have marked with the letter "B." The section we have marked with the letter "C" has a lot of dirty hand marks, but it is not as dirty as the section we have marked with the letter "B." To us, this shows the Officer handled it often down around that section marked "B," which could be an indication that this Officer spun this stick as he walked his beat. The constant catch and release of a stick while twirling it will put that portion of the stick in the hand most often. A stick with a light stain and no clear coat will absorb oil from the hands, then pick up and retain the most dirt. [especially when there is no swivel, and the stick has to be caught and released more often to keep it going while preventing it from tangling up on itself]. Then if we look at the stick between the portion marked "C," we can see the stick was carried most likely in the strong-hand. Some guys learned to spin/twirl in their weak-hand, many just use their strong-hand. So this helps us not only date the stick, but also prove how it was handled, and every hand print strengthens our feelings that this was a Baltimore Issued Espantoon that was spun by a Baltimore Officer because other agencies do not allow an officer to carry and Espantoon, the way a Baltimore Officer would.

Looking at the photo before this, the one where the Officer is seen in four variations, and we'll see his hand is most often held in the center of the shaft. Now we have to add to the holding of the stick, at the shaft, to what happened when the stick is actually used, either to strike someone or to pry their arm behind their back. It also works to put someone in an Am bar, and then to either walk them to the wagon or to cuff them when they are resisting. As long as it is resisting with intent to flee, rather than resisting while assaulting the Officer, how an officer reacts is dependent upon how the subject acts.

We'll retake a look at these pics to see better what is meant by, "carried at the shaft." if we look a the four picture group, in particular, the second picture, the one marked with the letter "B," we'll see how the stick was most often tucked up under the Officer's weak-arm. Unlike the picture most guys I saw, including myself, once the stick was tucked under the weak arm, the strong hand reaches up and across to hold the stick at that section earlier marked with the letter "C," in the "A, B, C' picture

oros20000260A

Courtesy Robert Oros
Notice the way this officer is holding the Espantoon, with
what looks like the handle but out on the striking end.
This is what makes a Nightstick, an Espantoon.

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ESP held in check dropped shadow 72

This is a most commonly used "Striking position," it is also a catch, and or release position of holding the stick when spinning/twirling the espantoon.

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ESP means to Carry at the ready labled 72i

We have and will continue to see this picture on the site, look where the stick is most often held, and we'll see why the hand-prints are where they are, and how this is a Baltimore thing. Obviously this doesn't just go for this stick, go get your stick, or the next time you pick up a stick, at a flea market, or antique store, pick it up and look for these tell tail signs. After all no other agency, not only had their officers turn a nightstick around and use the handle as the business end, but if we read our general orders we see several lines describing the various Batons allowed in use by the department, when they describe the Espantoon it is described as follows. Espantoon — Wooden Baton between 22-25 inches in length, with the striking end of the baton being between 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 inches in diameter, and the grip end being 1-3/8 inches in diameter. This baton has color restrictions and shall only be coated in an Oak, Ash, Maple, Hickory or Rosewood finish. Decorations are prohibited. 

1-3/8" is smaller than 1-3/4" So what they are describing as the striking end, is what most mistake as the handle. Meaning the Striking end is that handle looking end.

To better understand what makes an Espantoon, an Espantoon, we have to take into consideration, what is the different between, a nightstick carried in New York, Chicago, Philly or by any other police officer in any other police department anywhere in this country. Basically, other than Chicago that had a unique turning pattern to their baton’s handle, that could help identify it as a Chicago stick. Baltimore may not have a pattern for optional officer self purchased sticks, the issued sticks were the same design from 1937 to 1992. Before 1937, the sticks were not much different, the craftsmanship was slightly better looking. Put either the older versions or the more modern version on a table with other batons from around the world and a Baltimore baton could easily be picked from the crowd.

In Looking at how a Baltimore Officer carries, holds, or strikes with his or her Espantoon, we can see the, "Barrel-Head" is held opposite of the way one would think it would be held. Instead of holding it by what appears to be the handle, our officers use an alternative method of holding the Espantoon at the opposite end, and by the shaft. Like choking up on a baseball bat, the stick can be held closer to the end, the middle, or the top near what we refer to as the “Thong groove” or “Ring Stop”. See the Nomenclature for our Espantoon below. These adjustments coupled with the ways our Baltimore police officers hold what could have been an average police baton, or nightstick and turning it into one of Baltimore Police Department’s famous Espantoon’s. Another interesting point is, if we give our espantoon to an officer from another agency, and that officer uses it according to their agencies rule book, it is no longer an Espantoon, likewise, if the Chicago or NYPD officer gives one of their Nightsticks, or batons to a Baltimore City Police Officer, our officer could convert it to an espantoon in a split second, then just as quickly as it was turned it into an Espantoon, when they take it back and convert it back to a Baton or Nightstick.

In the following four pictures we'll see how a Baltimore Officer carries their Espantoon so that the way the blunt end of a simple branch from a blackthorn tree can be cut to give us a blunt end on a nightstick, or police baton. That blunt end is called a, “Burl-head” on the Irish Shillelagh and when our Irish ancestors within the Baltimore Police looked at the Espantoon, they saw the shaft end, and the handle which they would call a burl-head. Over the years call it a Baltimore “Accent” or simple misunderstanding, but what may have started out being called a, “Burl head”, became renamed the, “Barrel-head.” What is funny, is when I was told the names of the parts of an Espantoon, they started at the “Barrel-Head”, a grizzly old-timer of a policeman took my nightstick and almost as if he was angry at me for a mistake I had not yet made, but one that I without a doubt was about to make. He wanted to know the names of the parts of our Espantoon. Now keep in mind I was either just out of the Academy, or out on a walk along, while or still in the police academy. So, this veteran officer asked me to name the parts of a nightstick, he began by pointing the barrel-head while saying “Let’s start here, by your telling me what this part is called?” before I could say a word, and don’t get me wrong, I had no idea. But he continued, “You are probably thinking it is the “handle” or “grip”, and if so, you would be wrong, this part is called the, “Barrel-Head.” they call it a Barrel Head, because if you look closely, it resembles an old wooden “Barrel,” and it is at the striking head, of the officer’s stick. “That’s right” he went on to say, “I said, “striking-head” it is not as most people most likely including yourself who probably thought it was the handle, or grip to the Espantoon. Back then, he said, Barrel-Head, he doubled down, telling me how it is shaped like a barrel. It wasn’t until sometime between 2012 and 2015 that I was working on blunt weapons that were used years ago but are still in use in certain areas of society today.   While looking up modern weapons that have been around since primitive times, I came across a handful of handheld, blunt end impact weapons, like the Irish Shillelagh that oddly enough all other such blunt-end weapons, such as the formerly mentioned "Irish Shillelagh" or the "African Knob-kierrie" both having either a naturally formed or a hand carved yet blunt striking end. The weapon end in both cases was called a "Burl-Head." Which raises the question, could it be that years ago, heard, or perhaps even said, Burl-Head but was misunderstood and believed to have said, "Barrel-Head." After all, Baltimore is close enough to the Mason Dixon line to have given us a mix of both Southern and Northern accents that can, and often have been misunderstood. So now over the years from sometime in the early 1780’s we have changed Burl to Barrel, and it will remain a Barrel Head from here on out in Baltimore. 

If at this point the description is handled like it could serve as a method of weaponizing any stick, branch etc. This could be about as primitive as a caveman and his club. In fact, some police and certain groups in our society have called the police officer’s baton, or nightstick, a “Billy Club”. By converting what was most likely originally turned to be used as the handle of the officer’s baton into the striking end of a blunt force weapon, assaults can be ended much more rapidly. With many of our police in those early days having come from an Irish heritage, it wouldn’t be long before one of these Irish Police would look at the Espantoon and realize that by turning it around the handle on the lathe they could make a better striking end, and the as Ed Bremer said, “The quicker a bout with a criminal can be ended, the likeliness of either party being seriously injured is reduced. Bremer’s actual quote was,

The way they looked at the Irish shillelagh, to end fights, and like most fights it is considered cowardly to continue striking someone when the subject stops fighting, the Espantoon, Irish Shillelagh or the African Knobkierie, starting with the older Irish Shillelagh and the African Knobkierie these are both blunt force weapons that use nature to make or form the striking end often called a, "Burl-Head"  While Baltimore Espantoons are not natural and were originally turned with a handle, the Irish turned the stick around to use that handle as the Burl-Head, But with Baltimore having such strong southern accents the word, Burl-Head became Barrel-Head. 

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1920's Baltimore Police Issue

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker

Stick 1

Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 
This has one edge shaved flat so it would stay in place without popping out every time we turn a sharp corner or hit a pothole. The flat spot helps keep it in place when it's forced between the dashboard padding and the transmission hump.

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker
There was a time in the mid 50's that officers would shave the Barrel Head of their Espantoon
Taking it from convex to flat/straight then add or re-cut grooves in the new Barrelhead 

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 
 This is another case of someone attempting to straighten the convex, "Barrelhead" 

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Issued Stick 1987 

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 Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 

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Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker 

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Jim Brock
Perfection Collection
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker Model
Circa 2015 

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Non-Issue Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker

Stick 2

Non-Issued Stick 1937 - 1977
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Rev. John D. Longenecker

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Carl Hagen turned sold through Howard Uniform
circa 1965

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Carl Hagen

This is an early Carl Hagen Stick, it came while he was still turning them to the size of an issue stick, and isn't too far off of the standard issue stick, he just added a few things to make it stand out from the issue stick, and turned it from an oak. 

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P/O Wheatley holding a Carl Hagen Stick, notice how Carl rounded the top of his stick,  

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Carl Hagen
1955 - 1979

This is one of Carls first unique designs, it was done solely by him and became a popular design from his sticks. In the next pic, we'll see Officer Ray Wheatley holding a Carl Hagen Espantoon, it is more of an issue cut, but with a modern (at the time) cut, the cut that ended up being refined into the sticks we saw turned by Ed Bremer and Joe Hlafka.

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Jim Brock
Perfection Collection
Carl Hagen Model
Circa 2015

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Jim Brock
Perfection Collection Thin Blue Line Stick
Carl Hagen Model
Circa 2015 

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Prior to Issued Sticks 1954 - 1960
Rev. W. Gibbs McKenney & Carl Hagen 
At some point when McKenney had retired from turning sticks, he had donated his lathe and tools to a boy's school out west, and before meeting Reverend Longenecker, McKenney he had met Carl Hagen and showed him how to turn sticks, for whatever reason, Carl turned some sticks for Howard Uniform, he just didn't get the 500+ stick a year contracts from Howard Uniform that the Reverends McKenney & Longenecker received.

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Carl Hagen
1955 - 1979 

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Jim Brock
Perfection Collection Lignum vitae #001 Stick
Lignum vitae is on top 10 lists of hardest woods
depending on the list it is either 2nd or 4th
One might be how dense the wood is, while the other might be
how dense the guy/gal is that is trying to spelling Lignum Vitae
Joe Hlafka Model
Circa 2015 

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Ed Bremer
1974 - 1977

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Jim Brock
Edward Bremer Model
Circa 2015  

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1977 - 2007
P/O Joe Hlafka 

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Joe Hlafka

1987 - I bought this from Joe Hlafka direct apparently someone ordered it, paid half down and before it was done they found their stick and told Joe, they didn't need it anymore, could he sell it to someone for the remainder of the balance, I was the lucky guy that talked to Joe about a stick, and he gave me the stick for $12.00. I have replaced the thong twice, had it I say stolen once, the guy that took it, called it found. How you can find an espantoon in the trunk of a patrol car and not think it must belong to someone. Not to mention DRISCOLL is written around the stick in blue sharpie by the Ring Stop - Anyway, it is a 30 plus-year-old stick.  

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I turned this myself 

1990 - I put the extra groove on the shaft because after carrying it for a day or two I realized the stick felt good, weight was nice, but the shaft was too think to hold on while swinging it, So I taped the thong to the Barrel head with Duct tape, and put the stick back on the lathe. After shaving the shaft to a comfortable grip, I was done, pulled the tape and it was a spinner, or umm, I mean a winner, 

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Irish Shillelagh

This is to point out the striking part of this weapon, that blunt looking rock, or fist shaped portion at the end of this weapon and any blunt force weapon is called the "Burl Head". On the Espantoon the blunt striking end resembles and is often mistaken for the weapon's handle is called the "Barrel Head." Most likely stemming from a misunderstanding caused by Baltimore's southern drawl or bad "accent," causing a listener to misunderstand what a speaker may have said, Burl Head to thinking the speaker said, "Barrel Head." In 1987 when an old timer told me, he even pointed to the shape and, said, this is because this looks like a wine or whiskey barrel. Truth be told, it wasn't a barrel at all, it's a burl.

Carl Hagen 1957 77s

Barrel Head

This is the Barrel or Burl Head of one of Carl Hagen's early sticks - This Rounded off top end was exclusive to Carl Hagen, and was found more on the West side of Baltimore than the East. The East-side Espantoons saw more of a two or three tiered layers each with a hard edge that sat atop the espantoon like a crown on top the barrel head end of the stick. If we look at Carl's earlier stuff, he had a two or three-tiered top edge also, but it wasn't a hard edge. Carl had a super soft, smooth transition going tier to tier on the barrel head.

Ed Bremer 1974 77s

Barrel Head

This is the Barrel Head from one of Ed Bremer's early sticks, he put what he called a "Nib" on the top of all his Barrel head. Mr. Bremer felt he saved lives, both of Officers and Suspects because as he once said, "Nightsticks Save Lives, Preventing Officers from a need to escalate from hand-to-hand combat to the use of a firearm." The faster we can get a suspect into cuffs the safer it is for both the officer and the suspect. This stick is turned from Lignum vitae, a wood that was banned by the department as it was too heavy, hard and they felt could cause serious injury or death.

Some Reference Articles for Our Private Use

To Assist the local Police, Espantoon
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/29_May_1941_Espantoon_pt2.jpg
Arrest Disorderly Ones, Espantoon
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/29_May_1941_Espantoon.jpg
The Espantoon a Private Club? Johns Hopkins Pyramids 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/10_July_1979_Espantoon.jpg
Espantoon - Espantar
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/5_Jan_1885_Espantoon.jpg
Police Officer Shot Espantoon strikes pocket gun and shoots the officer
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/5_Jan_1885_Espantoon_2.jpg
City Police New Equipment Espantoon
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/10_Dec_1867__Espantoon.jpg
His Nightstick - Carl Hagen Pg 2
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/20_Nov_1960_Espantoon-pg2.jpg
His Nightstick - Carl Hagen Pg 1
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/20_Nov_1960_Espantoon-pg1.jpg 
Passe Espantoon
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/16_Jan_1966_Espantoon-passe.jpg 
Pith-Hat 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/13_June_1935_Pith_hat_pith.jpg 
Police Battle Espantoon 
 http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/14_Jun_1939_20_Nov_1960_Espantoon.jpg 
Faces Own Pistol 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/23_May_1940_Espantoon.jpg 
Espantoon 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/22_Mar_1941_Espantoon.jpg 
Policeman's Personal Friend 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/24_Jan_1966_Espantoon.jpg 
Espantoon - Half-pike
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/10_Jul_1940_Espantoon.jpg 
Watchman Fire Company 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/18_Apr_1843_Watchmen_firemen.jpg 
MP Espantoon - Louisville Slugger 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/29_May_1941_Espantoon_pt2.jpg
Plausible Explanation of Espantoon  
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/18_May_18_Espantoon.jpg  
Officers gift a ring and Espantoon to their sergeant 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/9_Jan_1858_Espantoon.jpg  
Does a Military Police in the City automatically mean he/she carries an Espantoon? the editor if the Sun said yes... I say No! 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/30_May_1941_Espantoon.jpg  
Here's What the Police Call an Espantoon  
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Here's_what_a_cop_calls_an_espantoon.jpg
Patrolman Battle 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/22_Mar_1914_ESPANTOON.jpg
Soldier Arrested and put in Jail 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/15_Mar_1920_ESPANTOON.jpg
Espantoon Tossing 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/2_Jan_1930_ESPANTOON.jpg  
Patrolman throws Espantoon at Auto 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1_Jan_1930_ESPANTOON.jpg 
Patrolman cleared in Espantoon Toss 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/3_Jan_1930_ESPANTOON.jpg 
Nightstick - Daystick 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/25_Aug_1932_ESPANTOON_PT-2.jpg 
Espantoons at Night 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/25_Aug_1932_ESPANTOON_PT-1.jpg  
Patrolman Waldsach Assaulted with Espantoon Pg 1
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/12_Mar_1919_Espantoon-1.jpg  
Patrolman Waldsach Assaulted with Espantoon Pg 2 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/12_Mar_1919_Espantoon-2.jpg  
Benedict Slain pt 1
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/16_Feb_1948_Espantoon-1.jpg  
Benedict Slain pt 2 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/16_Feb_1948_Espantoon-2.jpg 
Guilty of Assault on Patrolman 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/6_Jun_Espantoon.jpg 
Patrolman Fight 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/21_Mar_1914_Espantoon.jpg 
Steven Stevenson False Statement
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/11_Sep_1838_Espantoon.jpg 
Officer Twirling sketch 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/18July1935-spontoon.jpg 
Assault High Constable 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/24Mar1846_Spontoon.jpg 
Theft Charge Spontoon 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/23Mar1846_Spontoon.jpg 
Unfaithful Watchman 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/20Oct20-1843_Spontoon.jpg 
The trial of the Ballot Box 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Sat__Apr_1__1876_(1a).jpg
Maybe Sachle Snatcher 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Sun__May_18__1902_.jpg
Officer Burkens 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Sat__Apr_1__1876_.jpg
Marshall Faran 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Sat__Aug_9__1902_.jpg  
Horse Bites Officer 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Sun__Sep_25__1904_.jpg

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http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(54).jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1_KSCN0004_sm.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1Elroy_Norris.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img080.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img091.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img099.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img153.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img154.jpg 
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img169.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/1img178o.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(26).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(31).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(32).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(33).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(34).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(35).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(50).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(51).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(52).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Scan_20170807_(55).jpg

http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__Nov_20__1960__1a.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__Nov_20__1960__2a.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__Nov_20__1960__3a.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__Nov_20__1960__4a.jpg

http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sat__Apr_1__1876_(1a).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sat__Apr_1__1876_(1).jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Police-spurn-citys-nightsticks-buy-their-own-Jun-27-1977.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The-Nightstick-Oct-10-1959.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/POLICE-SCHOOL-GIVES-NIGHTSTICK-DIPLOMAS.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/18-April-1843-Espantoon-in-sunpaper-first-tme-mentioned-(2).pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Nightstick-Joe-guaranteed-hobby-1983.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/His-Nightsticks-Air-Swing-Shifts-To-Make-Heads-Sting-May-14-1934.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Espantoon-as-lifeline-Sep-7-1903.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/What_makes_an_Espantoon_an_espatoon.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sat__Aug_9__1902_.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__Sep_25__1904_.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sat__Apr_1__1876_.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Sun__May_18__1902_.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Baltimore_Sun_Fri__Aug_28__1868__Spontoon.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Evening_Sun_Sat__Mar_22__1941_Spontoon.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Evening_Sun_Thu__Aug_25__1932_ESPANTOON_PT-2.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/The_Evening_Sun_Thu__Jul_18__1935_spontoon.jpg
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/nightstick_10_Oct_1959.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Policeman_cut_with_Espantoon_11_Jul_1965.pdf
http://www.baltimorepolicemuseum.org/Espantoon/Shot_himself_with_his_Espantoon.pdf

 

Our Espantoon Collection

Devider color with motto

Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll

Published in Courage

Pawnshop Unit

Tuesday, 14 January 2020 05:31
Pawnshop Unit
Pawnshop History BPD

21 July 1909

To Keep Tabs on Pawnshops
Col. Swann Once Law Regarding Daily Reports of Deals

To help the police keep tabs on secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers who by stolen goods, Col. Sherlock Swann, President of the Board of Police Commissioners, will have introduced into the next Legislature a bill compelling Three-Ball Experts to make daily reports to the police Headquarters their purchases of valuables. Laws like this are in existence in nearly every other city.

“It is very important,” said Col. Swann yesterday, “that we have such a law in Baltimore. I do not say this simply because other cities have it, but only because it is necessary to keep tabs on stolen articles.

"I hope that when the bill is introduced at the coming Legislature it will pass, for it will be of great help to our department. Such a law affords the police the opportunity to recover the stolen property if the thieves are not caught. “Marshall Farnan warmly approved of the idea. "It's a necessity," said the Marshal. "To do good work we have to be able to date, and we should, by all means, have a system of knowing what jewelry is bought by secondhand dealers and pawnbrokers."

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Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the Historic and Heroic... the men and women of the Baltimore Police Department who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll

Published in Dignity

Riots 1861 Newspaper Article II

Monday, 13 January 2020 06:03
Riots 1861 Newspaper Article II

The Civil War’s First Bloodshed

19 April 1861

 The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 72

The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 1 72

The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 272

The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 372

The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 472

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The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 672

The Baltimore Sun Sat Apr 20 1861 772i

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http://baltimorepolicemuseum.org/images/Mounted_Sun__Apr_16__1961_Pg1.jpg

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Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department. Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

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Published in Justice

Riots 1861 Newspaper Article

Monday, 13 January 2020 05:53
Riots 1861 Newspaper Article

The Civil War’s First Bloodshed

18 April 1861

 Passage of Norther Federal Troops

The Baltimore Sun Fri Apr 19 1861 72

From the Article Above
Regarding the First Bloodshed of the Civil War Read the Following and Note where the Article Left-out
the Name of the Injured Soldier. We Added His Name in Brackets
[Nicholas Biddle] also We Including a Full Size Article with Color Codes
Just Click the Article Above

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biddlecarte

Pottsville, Schuylkill County, resident Nicholas Biddle (circa 1796-1876) was immortalized by a carte de visite for being "The first man wounded in the Great American Rebellion, Baltimore, April 18,1861." This type of "visiting card"--mounted with a small photographic portrait--was popular from the 1860s through the 1880s. The rare carte de visite was acquired in 2008 by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission for the collections of The State Museum of Pennsylvania in Harrisburg. Museum curators believe this card was produced upon a suggestion by Pottsville newspaper publisher Benjamin Bannan (1807-1875), who proposed that copies be sold during Biddle's appearance at the Great Central Fair in Philadelphia in 1864. The fair raised money to purchase necessities and medical supplies for Union soldiers. [The State Museum of Pennsylvania]

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19 April 1861

The march from Depot to Depot was a rapid one, and the column moved, flanked on either side by files of Baltimore’s Police Officers. About ten paces apart, and extending several squares, the mass of spectators following indulging in all sorts of pastimes, such as singing “Away Down in the land of Dixie,” cheering for “Jeff Davis” and the Southern Confederacy,” the “Union,” &C.-

While the Troops were occupying the cars at Mount Clare, a complete pandemonium existed, and such a screeching, yelling, hooting and cheering was probably never heard before, or since.

Demonstrations of a riot were renewed, and several bricks were hurled at the cars. One party was arrested by the police but afterward was released.

A colored man [Nicholas Biddle] received a severe cut to the head (Some reports say the gash in Mr. Biddle's head was so deep that it left his skull exposed requiring stitches to close the wound and stop the bleeding) Reports also listed him as one of the soldiers that were injured. Which was something that made Mr. Biddle proud, as he was in the US Army at a time when, African American's were not allowed to wear a military unitform. Mr Biddle hower was an ecaped slave, that took the name of a banker he had read about in the papers. He was a hard worker and had the kind of personality that had those round him enjoying the time they spent together, to a point where those leading the group Biddle was in gave him a uniform of his own to wear and excepted him as they would any soldier. The Train departed for Washington DC at Approximately 4 o’clock.

This the First bloodshed of the civil war, and it took place while marching from Bolton Depot to the Camden Depot by way of Howard Street. During this march, like the march that would take place the following day in the better known Pratt & President Street Riots of 19 April 1861, these riots to place a day earlier on 18 April 1861 between 2 o'clock and 4 o'clock. These riots were briefly mentioned in a book by Curtis Clay Pollock titled Dear Ma - The Civil War Letters of Curtice Clay Pollock. Mr. Pollock was one of the First Defender; he was a First Lieutenant in the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry. Lt. Pollock wrote of himself in his letters as follows,

Pollock served as a member of the Washington Artillery, a Pottsville PA Militia Company that marched off to war in response to President Lincoln's First Call-to-Arms in April 1861. Joining a company that would go on to have the distinction of being among the very first Northern volunteer units to have arrived in Washington following the outbreak of war, reaching the Capital on the evening of 18 April 1861, after coming under attack in the streets of Baltimore.

This was a riot that does not garner the kind of attention received in Fort Sumter, or the Pratt Street Riots. The Pratt Street Riots took place in Baltimore on Pratt and President Streets the day after the Howard Street Riots. The Howard Street Riots and the Pratt Street Riots took place in Baltimore on the 18th and 19th of April 1861.

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Dear Ma - The Civil War Letters of Curtis Clay Pollock: First Defender and First Lieutenant, 48th Pennsylvania Infantry - By Curtis Clay Pollock

Curtis Clay Pollock served bravely with the 48th Pennsylvania, one of the Civil War s most famous fighting regiments, from the regiment s organization in September 1861 until his mortal wounding at the Battle of Petersburg in June 1864, participating in the regiment s many campaigns in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Kentucky, and Tennessee and seeing action at some of the war s most sanguinary battles, including 2nd Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Knoxville. Prior to his service in the 48th, Pollock also served as a member of the Washington Artillery, a Pottsville-based militia company that marched off to war in response to President Lincoln s first call-to-arms in April 1861 and a company that would have the distinction of being among the very first Northern volunteer units to arrive in Washington following the outbreak of war, reaching the capital on the evening of April 18, 1861, after coming under attack in the streets of Baltimore. In recognition of their timely response and prompt arrival in the capital, Pollock and the other members of the Washington Artillery, would be among those who earned the proud title of First Defender. All throughout his time in uniform--from the day after he first arrived in Washington with the First Defenders until a few days before receiving his fatal wound at Petersburg--Curtis Pollock wrote letters home. Many of these letters were written to his younger siblings, some were addressed to his father. Most, however, were written to his mother, Emily, whom he affectionately referred to as his Dear Ma. Fortunately, many of these letters survive and are held today in the archives of the Historical Society of Schuylkill County in Pottsville. The letters of Curtis Pollock provide us with a window to view the history and experiences of one of the war s most famous and most well-traveled regiments--the 48thPennsylvania--a regiment that served in many theaters of the war, under many different commanders, and in many of the war s largest and bloodiest battles; a regiment that endured many battlefield defeats as well as many battlefield triumphs. More than this, though, Pollock s letters home enable us to gain a further glimpse of the war from the inside. They chronicle and document the actions, the experiences, and the thoughts of a brave young man, who like so many others, volunteered his services and ultimately gave his life fighting in defense of his nation.

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The Baltimore Riots 1861
Nick Biddle and the First Defenders

Biddle Nicholas

Nicholas Biddle

Where Did Nicholas Biddle get his name?  (January 8, 1786 – February 27, 1844) was an American financier who served as the third and last president of the Second Bank of the United States (chartered 1816–1836). He also served in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. He is best known for his role in the Bank War.

A member of the prominent Biddle family of Philadelphia, Nicholas Biddle worked for prominent officials such as John Armstrong Jr. and James Monroe in his youth. After returning to Philadelphia, he won election to the state legislature. While serving in the legislature, he successfully lobbied Congress and President Monroe for the creation of a new central bank, which became known as the Second Bank of the United States. In 1822, Monroe appointed Biddle as the third president of the bank. Biddle would continue to serve as the bank's president for several years, during which time he exercised power over the nation's money supply and interest rates, seeking to prevent economic crises.

At the request of Henry Clay and other Whigs, Biddle asked Democratic President Andrew Jackson to renew the bank's federal charter in 1832. Jackson, who held a deep hostility to many banks, declined to renew the charter, beginning a political debate known as the Bank War. When Jackson transferred the federal government's deposits to several state banks, Biddle raised interest rates, causing a mild economic recession. The federal charter expired in 1836, but the bank was re-chartered by Pennsylvania. Biddle continued to serve as president of the bank until 1839.

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History

After the Confederate States opened fire on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed on April 15, calling 75,000 militia to suppress the rebellion. The first volunteer troops reached Washington, D.C. on April 18, 1861, at 6:00 pm. These first troops were the Pennsylvania First Defenders and consisted of 476 officers and men. The troops were quartered in hallways and committee rooms of the United States Senate and House of Representatives. At 9:00 pm that evening, the troops were brought into the basement of the Capitol where they were distributed government arms and ammunition. President Abraham Lincoln, Secretary of State, William H. Seward, and the Secretary of War, Simon Cameron, were present as the arms were being distributed. During this time, President Lincoln proceeded down the line to shake hands with every member of the companies.

Casualties

En route to Washington, D.C, the troops boarded a train at Camden Station in Baltimore, Maryland – the largest city of that Slave state. What lead to be known as the Baltimore Riot of 1861, they were met with an angry mob of pro-South sympathizers who threw bricks and pieces of the cobble stone streets at them. Many of the men received serious wounds as a result of the confrontation. Among them was sixty-five-year-old Nicholas Biddle of the Washington Artillerists who is believed to be the first to have shed blood in the American Civil War. As an African American in a union uniform, Nick Biddle likely stood out as an easy target to a group of simple southern sympathizers and Biddle suffered a head wound which was serious enough to expose the bone in his skull.

Recognition

In December 1864, members of the Washington Artillerists Frances P. Dewees and Samuel R. Russel wrote a letter to Congressman A. G. Curtin of Pennsylvania to outline the importance of the First Defenders' actions at the early stages of the war. They requested that the men of the First Defenders receive recognition in the form of an awarded medal. On May 26, 1891, the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania made an appropriation of $1,500 for such medals of honor. On the front of each bronze medal is the image of the Capitol and the words "First in Defense of the Capitol: April 18, 1861." On the back, each of the five First Defender companies are listed, followed by the inscription "Medal of Honor Presented by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania," and the name of the respective soldier.

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Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

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Published in Justice

Nicholas Biddle

Monday, 13 January 2020 05:43
Nicholas Biddle

The Baltimore Riots 1861
Nick Biddle and the First Defenders

 Biddle Nicholas
Nicholas Biddle

18 April 1861 after a day of screaming, hollering, yelling, cursing, throwing bricks, or portions of cobblestones that put men in the hospital, fighting for their lives. But, it wasn't enough, and it certainly wasn't the end of it, in fact, they were just warming up, for worse things to come the following day.

Click Here to View 18 April 1861 Newspaper Article

19 April 1861, Southern sympathizers attacked the Massachusetts 6th Regiment Infantry, screaming, hollering, yelling, cursing, throwing bricks, or pieces of cobblestone, and that was the least of their troubles. Not long after bricks were hurled in the direction of the soldiers, the report of a handgun was heard to have rung out in the area. Before long, shots were heard coming from both sides. Later the military denied having fired on the crowd, but these shootings were witnessed by Marshal Frey, Mayor Brown and many others. Four soldiers were killed in what has since become known as the Pratt Street Riots, or the Baltimore Riot of 1861 or the Pratt Street Massacre. [New York Public Library]

Click Here to View 19 April 1861 Newspaper Article

The First Official Casualty of the Civil War was a 65-year-old Escaped Slave.

The first man to shed blood during the Civil war was an escaped slave by the name of Nicholas Biddle from Pottsville, PA. Due to his having escaped a life of slavery very little is known of Mr. Biddle's life.  From what we have learned he was born to slave parents in Delaware circa 1796. At some point, he escaped slavery and settled in Pennsylvania. It was common practice for escaped slaves to change their names to avoid capture, two stories told of Nicholas Biddle.

According to one historian's findings; Biddle escaped to Philadelphia and got a job as a servant for Nicholas Biddle, the wealthy financier, and president of the Second Bank of the United States. In this story, the former slave and the financier traveled to Pottsville for a dinner meeting of entrepreneurs and industrialists at nearby Mount Carbon to celebrate the first successful operation of an anthracite-fueled blast furnace in America. The servant remained in Pottsville to live. Another account is that Biddle relocated from Delaware directly to Pottsville and became a servant at the hotel where the aforementioned celebratory dinner was held, at which he met the famous Biddle. 

In any event, we know that he adopted the name of the prominent Philadelphian, and by 1840 Nicholas Biddle was residing in Pottsville. He worked odd jobs to earn a living, including street vending, selling oysters in the winter and ice cream in the summer. The 1860 U.S. census lists his occupation as "porter." 

Biddle befriended members of a local militia company, the Washington Artillerists, and attended their drills and excursions for the next 20 years. The company members were fond of Biddle and treated him as one of their own, and although African Americans were not permitted to serve in the militia, they gave him a uniform to wear.

At the outbreak of the Civil War and the fall of Fort Sumter on April 15, 1861, President Lincoln issued a call for 75,000 volunteers to serve for three months to suppress the insurrection in the South.  Unlike other antebellum militia units, the Washington Artillery had maintained a state of readiness and was among the first companies to respond to Lincoln's call to arms.

Two days later, the Washington Artillerists departed Pottsville by train to enter the war, along with 65-year-old Nicholas Biddle, who served as an aide to the company's commanding officer, Captain James Wren.

On April 18, five companies, numbering some 475 men, were sworn in at Harrisburg and mustered into the service of the United States. That is, all except for Nicholas Biddle, who as an African American was prohibited from serving in the U.S. Army.

The soldiers left on an emergency order to defend Washington, DC against a rumored Confederate attack. But in 1861, there was no continuous passenger rail service through Baltimore, and when the soldiers detained in the largest city in the slave state of Maryland, they encountered a hostile mob of pro-Southern sympathizers.

As the companies marched to meet their trains, members of the mob taunted the soldiers and hurled bricks and stones. Biddle, a black man in uniform, was an easy target. Someone threw a brick, striking Biddle in his head and knocking him to the ground. This made Nicholas Biddle the first casualty caused by hostile action in the Civil War.

The wound was grave enough that it exposed his bone. It was reportedly the first and most serious injury suffered that day, and he bore the scar the rest of his life.

An anxious President Lincoln learned of the arrival of the five Pennsylvania companies and of their treacherous passage through the mob at Baltimore. The morning after they arrived in Washington, Lincoln personally thanked each member of the five companies and singled out the wounded for special recognition.

After his military service, Biddle returned to relative obscurity in Pottsville, where he eked out a living performing odd jobs.  In the summer of 1864, he appeared at the Great Central Fair in Philadelphia, where photographs of him in a Washington Artillerists uniform, captioned "the first man wounded in the Great American Rebellion," were sold to raise funds for the relief of Union soldiers. In the end, however, Biddle was forced to solicit alms to make ends meet. He died destitute in 1876 without even enough money to cover his burial expenses. Surviving members of the Washington Artillerists and the National Light Infantry each donated a dollar to purchase a simple headstone for him, and they had it inscribed: "In Memory of Nicholas Biddle, Died Aug.2, 1876, Aged 80 years.  His was the Proud Distinction of Shedding the First Blood in the Late War for the Union, Being Wounded while marching through Baltimore with the First Volunteers from Schuylkill County, 18 April 1861. Erected by his Friends in Pottsville."

Throughout the remainder of his life, Biddle retained unpleasant memories of his perilous journey with the Washington Artillerists through Baltimore. Although it garnered him the "proud distinction of shedding the first blood," he was often heard to remark "that he would go through the infernal regions with the artillery, but would never again go through Baltimore."

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 Nick Biddle

He was said to have made his way around to fairs, and other events wearing his uniform and signing cards like the one above which says. "Nick Biddle" Of Pottsville, Pa. The first man wounded in the great American Rebellion, "Baltimore, April 18, 1861." The card/photo was printed by W.R. Mortimer, Pottsville, Schuylkill Co., Pa.

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Nicholas Biddle and the First Defenders
By Ronald S. Coddington

18 April, 2011


On the afternoon of April 18, 1861, Nick Biddle was quietly helping his unit, the Washington Artillery from Pottsville, Pa., set up camp inside the north wing of the Capitol building. The day before, he was almost killed.

Biddle was a black servant to Capt. James Wren, who oversaw the company of about 100 men. On April 18 the Washington Artillery had been one of several Army outfits, totaling about 475 men, heading through Baltimore en route to Washington, D.C., in response to President Lincoln’s call for 75,000 troops to put down the Southern rebellion.

Collection of Thomas Harris Nicholas “Nick” Biddle by William R. Mortimer of Pottsville, Pa., circa 1861 - Thousands of pro-Confederate Baltimoreans turned out to meet them at the city’s northern train station. (Another group, 45 regular Army soldiers from the Fourth Artillery en route from St. Paul, Minn., to Fort McHenry, also disembarked.) The crowd expressed disappointment in the non-military look of some of the volunteers, who hailed from eastern Pennsylvania coal-mining country. They “were not more than half uniformed and armed, and presented some as hard-looking specimens of humanity as could be found anywhere,” reported the Baltimore Sun. Most of the men carried their own revolvers, while a few toted antiquated flintlocks. A select group carried state-issued modern muskets but had no gunpowder for them.

Captain Wren, Biddle and the others were aware of Baltimore’s pro-secession sentiment and expected trouble. One volunteer reportedly asked Biddle if he was afraid to face rowdy “plug-uglies” and jokingly warned, “They may catch you and sell you down in Georgia.” Biddle replied in dead earnest that he was going to Washington trusting in the Lord and that he wouldn’t be scared away by the devil himself — or a bunch of thugs.

The Pennsylvanians formed a line and prepared to march through Baltimore to another station, where they could catch a Washington-bound train. The regulars would lead the way. The line started and moved rapidly, shielded from the abusive mobs by policemen stretched 10 paces apart. A private recalled the “Roughs and toughs, ‘longshoremen, gamblers, floaters, idlers, red-hot secessionists, as well as men ordinarily sober and steady, crowded upon, pushed and hustled the little band and made every effort to break the thin line.”

The mob derided the volunteers and cheered for Jefferson Davis and the Confederacy. Some aimed their abuse at Biddle. Capt. Wren remembered, “The crowd raised the cry, ‘Nigger in uniform!’ and poor old Nick had to take it.”

Around the halfway point of the journey, the regular troops split off and marched to Fort McHenry, leaving the Pennsylvanians alone. “At this juncture the mob was excited to a perfect frenzy, breaking the line of the police and pushing through the files of men, in an attempt to break the column,” wrote one historian. The boldest in the crowd spit, kicked, punched and grabbed at the coattails of the volunteers.

As the Pennsylvanians neared the station, rioters chucked cobblestones and jagged pieces of broken brick. The bombardment intensified as the volunteers arrived at the station and began to board the cars. Suddenly a chunk of brick struck Biddle in the head and left a deep, profusely bleeding cut. He managed to get on the train as the mob climbed on top of the cars and jumped up and down on the roofs. Biddle found a comfortable spot, wrapped his head in a handkerchief, and then pulled his fatigue cap close over the wound.

When the Pennsylvanians finally arrived in Washington that evening, they received a very different reception, as enthusiastic crowds welcomed them as saviors. They occupied temporary barracks in the north wing of the Capitol. One officer remembered that, when Biddle entered the rotunda of the building, “He looked up and around as if he felt that he had reached a place of safety, and then took his cap and the bloody handkerchief from his head and carried them in his hand. The blood dropped as he passed through the rotunda on the stone pavement.”

From Heber S. Thompson’s The First Defenders, scanned by openlibrary.org Front and back of a commemorative medal approved by an act of the Pennsylvania legislature in 1891 and issued to surviving members of the First Defenders.

A grateful President Lincoln later greeted the Pennsylvanians. He reportedly shook hands with Biddle and encouraged him to seek medical attention. But Biddle refused. He preferred to remain with the company. At the time some considered Biddle’s blood the first shed in hostility during the Civil War.

The House of Representatives later passed a resolution thanking the Pennsylvanians for their role in defense of the capital. The volunteers came to be known as the “First Defenders” in honor of their early response to Lincoln’s call to arms.

 

Sources: The Baltimore Sun, April 19, 1861; James M. Guthrie, “Camp-Fires of the Afro-American”; Samuel P. Bates, “History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, 1861-5,” Vol. 1; Heber S. Thompson, “The First Defenders”; Weekly Press (Philadelphia, Pa.), March 24 and July 21, 1886; John D. Hoptak, “A Forgotten Hero of the Civil War,” Pennsylvania Heritage, Spring 2010; W.W. Munsell & Co., “History of Schuylkill County, Pa.”; Lowell (Massachusetts) Daily Citizen and News, April 20, 1870; U.S. House of Representatives, Journal of the House of Representatives of the United States; Weekly Miners’ Journal (Pottsville, Pa.), Aug. 11, 1876; Herrwood E. Hobbs, “Nicholas Biddle,” Historical Society of Schuykill County, 1961.

Ronald S. Coddington

Ronald S. Coddington is the author of “Faces of the Civil War” and “Faces of the Confederacy.” His forthcoming book profiles the lives of men of color who participated in the Civil War. He writes “Faces of War,” a column in the Civil War News.

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Please contact Det. Ret. Kenny Driscoll if you have any pictures of you or your family members and wish them remembered here on this tribute site to Honor the fine men and women who have served with Honor and Distinction at the Baltimore Police Department.

Anyone with information, photographs, memorabilia, or other "Baltimore City Police" items can contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. follow us on Twitter @BaltoPoliceHist or like us on Facebook or mail pics to 8138 Dundalk Ave. Baltimore Md. 21222

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll

Published in Justice

Handcuffs Restraints

Sunday, 12 January 2020 07:26
Handcuffs Restraints

Baltimore Police Handcuffs Restraints

Darley cuffs marked
W.S. Darley Receipt courtesy Ray Wheatley
1944 Receipt for a set of Peerless Handcuffs

Catching criminals is only half the battle, restraining them can be several more battles throughout the course of effectively prosecuting them. Police have the odd job of fighting a man but only to a point which is necessary, the man he fights is trying to kill him, but the officer is only allowed to fight to a point which necessary to effect the arrest, after which he must, switch roles, offer first aid for injuries, then restrain and protect. Often a suspect is wanted by the public, so officers have to get the suspect safely before the courts. Many don’t realize jails and prisons are made as much to protect the prisoner from society and them to protect society from that prisoner. It used to be that jails were for punishment, a sort of adult timeout… then they became all about educating a man, teaching him the wrongs of his former self. They hope he will come out a better man. To get to that place and along the way we had restraints. This is a brief history of those restraints. 

SW Cuffs

Baltimore Smith and Wesson Model 90 Handcuffs
SW Cuffs 2

Here's a close-up of the marking 

Why Do we Cuff all Prisoners Today
In Part Because of Cases Like this

On 19 Nov 1928 Captain John Carey night commander of police, received word that a man answering the description of a man wanted in New York for armed Robberies and the shooting of a New York City Police officer was in a Baltimore Street hotel. Three detectives were detailed to go to the location and bring the suspect in; Captain Carey told them to bring the suspect to police headquarters for questioning. The detectives tried up the location and found the person that was being reported but felt he was not the suspect wanted, by NYPD. Captain Carey said he told the three officers sent earlier of the dangers of this suspect, and let them know he was a dangerous and desperate character. While the Detectives didn’t think the guy they received a tip on was their suspect they still brought him in for questioning where they cleared him and released him shortly after.

Later the same morning Detective Sergeant Frederick W. Carroll received a phoned in a tip of a suspect at a downtown hotel, he didn’t have any info on the suspect, what he was wanted for, or even that three Detectives had already gone out on this call. All he had was that police were there earlier looking for a suspect, and that the suspect was there now. Detective Sergeant Carroll then left the station to investigate this complaint; he didn’t know it was guys out of his own unit/division that went. We don’t know who phoned in the tip, it may have been the person police brought in, and then released, or a hotel employee; we’ll never know. Likewise, we’ll never know why, Detective Sergeant Carroll didn’t look into it any further, or take back-up. He just took the name the caller gave him, grabbed a set of keys, and went alone… While at the hotel he located the suspect and arrested him. The two proceeded from the hotel to as far as Fayette Street, and Fallsway when the suspect pulled a pistol and demanded that Detective Sergeant Carroll put his hands up. Detective Sergeant Elmer O’Grady and Detective Joseph Carroll, who was looking out a window of the police building, ran out to assist Detective Sergeant Carroll, only to be met by the gunman’s fire. Detective Sergeant Carroll died a few minutes after being taken to the hospital. Oh, Grady and Joseph Carroll were reported as doing well. 

Several things that should be known about the Baltimore Police 1928
1st - We didn’t cuff people in public
2nd - We didn’t search people in public, nor did we stand by and watch as other searched people in public. To that Commissioner Charles D. Gaither read the following from the rule book to the media:

“Members of the force shall not search, or act as a witness to the searching of any person in any place other than the station house, or headquarters unless such search is made for dangerous or deadly weapons suspected to be upon the person of the prisoner.”

In this case Det. Sgt. F Carroll had no info on the suspect and was within the rules of the Baltimore Police Department. It is because of cases like this, that we have the rules we have today, cases like this that let us handcuff people that are only suspected of a crime. And cases like this that let us search incident to arrest. This happened in 1928, things were so different, without radios on every shoulder, or hip like today, information wasn’t as freely distributed as it is today.

As his brothers and sisters of the Baltimore Police Department we will not let him be forgotten, His service Honored the City of Baltimore, and the Baltimore Police Department may he rest in peace, and may God bless him. 

The suspect in this case also died of his injuries, but not before admitting to police that he was the suspect wanted in New York for robberies and Shootings, of two police officers in the NYPD


A Brief History of Handcuffs

since being used, in one form or another for centuries, they have had a variety of names. Manacles, Nippers, Thumb-cuffs, Grips, Hooks, Claws, Dowlers, Shackles, Handcuffs, often shortened to “Cuffs” are just a few of the names used. As for styles… we have the Iron claw originally put out by Argus, later sold under the name Pee Jay, then there is the Pistol Grip, A Policeman’s Hook, Harvey Chain Grip, a simple leather strap with a wooden turned handled used like a leash, to hogtie, the suspect twisting his/her arm behind their back and transport (normally walk them to a call box to wait for a wagon, or before that to walk them to the station. Over the years, there have been many styles of these mechanisms used primarily as restraints. What other uses than restraints, you wonder. Well, entertainment Houdini? His use of handcuffs was to escape from – not be restrained by - handcuffs, while he mesmerized crowds of spectators. And, in France in the 1950’s, the single locking La Pegy handcuff was thought to be a fashion statement. France fashion, Go figure! And let’s not forget those that used them as a sexual implement, (Ok let’s forget them… ) so much for fashion and style and such; let’s get down to the real deal/appeal about handcuffs.

From convicts to captives, to conjurers, to perverts, handcuffs have been used to detain, constrain, and entertain since they have been recorded in history.

The poet Publius Vergilius Maro, known in English as Virgil, recounts the legend of the

fitting of the first handcuffs on the mythical god Proteus. Possessing the gift of prophecy

but not the gift of giving, Proteus selfishly kept his knowledge to himself. Aristaeus knew

that the only thing that would compel Proteus to share his knowledge was to bind him

and not let go. This binding or cuffing is the first recorded (though mythical) use of what

we now call handcuffs.

But, there is more to the story of handcuffs. In the 4th century B.C., Carthaginians lugged

chariots full of handcuffs with them in their anticipation of conquering the Greeks.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the words swivel manacle, and shackbold were used to

describe handcuffs. The word eventually evolved from the Anglo-Saxon “hand cop”,

meaning that which “cops” or “catches”, to the version of the word we use today –

handcuff.

Because the use of and need for restraining people developed before working metals were discovered, the first handcuffs were actually made from strips of animal hide, rope

made from reeds and vines was the updated method and material employed to confine

other human beings and prevent escape. As time progressed, so did human beings’ ability to make stronger, reusable hand cops/cuffs. This ability to make stronger handcuffs was introduced, along with the invention of locks, in the Bronze Age. During the Iron Age, a more sophisticated workmanship was forged. However, most handcuffs were ‘one size fits all’ and caused more pain for the bigger boned detainee and potential freedom for the small-wristed prisoner. They were simple metal rings that locked in place with no room for adjustment to the size of the captive’s wrists. That is until 1862 when there were major changes to handcuffs when inventor W.V. Adams patented a design for handcuffs that had adjustable ratchets. In 1865, John Tower, who

started one of the most successful American handcuff companies, used Adams’ design to

manufacturer handcuffs up until WWII. Now, there are literally hundreds of types of handcuffs. Some bought for collecting only, and some made to accommodate law enforcers in their need for swift and secure handling of disorderly crowds and individuals. For the swift securing of the unruly, Plasti-Cuffs are often used; they are flexible restraints that resemble the plastic ties used to secure cable lines in the field these are known as “Flex-cuffs”. With Universal Precautions the outlook of the day, Plasti-Cuffs help prevent the spread of disease, as they are disposable. They are also cheaper than the traditional metal restraints used by law enforcement, as well as easier to carry. (I should say they are said to be easier to carry, these used to be quite cumbersome, on raids guys would put a rack of these on their belt keeper and go in looking like a lineman.

So, the handcuff has evolved from myth to leather, to twine, to metal mechanism most popular throughout recent history back to a disposable one time use flexible, “Flex-cuffs”. All the while preserving the original uses – to constrain, detain and even entertain.

References –

Handcuffs.org

Yahoo.com

The rest is history.com -Article by J. Parker Adair

Handcuffs by Inspector Maurice Moser.


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Styles

Handcuffs which were worn during trials by the accused in the assassination of President Lincoln.
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There are three main types of contemporary metal handcuffs: chain (cuffs are held together by a short chain), hinged (since hinged handcuffs permit less movement than a chain-cuff, they are generally considered to be more secure), and rigid solid bar handcuffs. While bulkier to carry, rigid handcuffs permit several variations in cuffing. Hiatts Speed-cuffs are rigid handcuffs used by most police forces in the United Kingdom. Both rigid and hinged cuffs can be used one-handed to apply pain-compliance/control techniques that are not workable with the chain type of cuff. Various accessories are available to improve the security or increase the rigidity of handcuffs, including boxes that fit over the chain or hinge and can themselves be locked with a padlock.

In 1933 the Royal Canadian Mounted Police used a type called "Mitten Handcuffs" to prevent criminals from being able to grab an object like the officer's gun. While used by some in law enforcement it was never popular.

Handcuffs may be manufactured from various metals, including carbon steel, stainless steel, and aluminum, or from synthetic polymers.

Sometimes two pairs of handcuffs are needed to restrain a person with an exceptionally large waistline because the hands cannot be brought close enough together; in this case, one cuff on one pair of handcuffs is handcuffed to one of the cuffs on the other pair, and then the remaining open handcuff on each pair is applied to the person's wrists. Oversized handcuffs are available from a number of manufacturers.

The National Museum of Australia has a number of handcuffs in its collection dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. These include 'T'-type 'Come Along', 'D'-type and 'Figure-8' handcuffs.

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Double Locks

Handcuffs with double locks have a detente which when engaged stops the cuff from ratcheting tighter to prevent the wearer from tightening them. Tightening could be intentional or by struggling; if tightened, the handcuffs may cause nerve damage or loss of circulation. Also, some wearers could tighten the cuffs to attempt an escape by having the officer loosen the cuffs and attempting to escape while the cuffs are loose. Double locks also make picking the locks more difficult.

There exist three kinds of double locks as described in a Smith & Wesson brochure:

Lever lock: Movement of a lever on the cuff causes the detente to move into a position that locks the bolt. No tool is required to double lock this type of cuff.

Push pin lock: A small peg on the key is inserted end-wise into a hole to engage the detente.

Slot lock: These also are actuated with a peg, but in this case, it is inserted into a slot and moved sideways to engage the detente.

Double locks are generally disengaged by inserting the key and rotating it in the opposite direction from that used to unlock the cuff.

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Plastic handcuffs

Plastic restraints, known as wrist ties, riot cuffs, plasti-cuffs, flex-cuffs, flex-cuffs, tri-fold cuffs, zap straps, zip-cuffs, or zip-strips, are lightweight, disposable plastic strips resembling electrical cable ties. They can be carried in large quantities by soldiers and police and are therefore well-suited for situations where many may be needed, such as during large-scale protests and riots. In recent years, airlines have begun to carry plastic handcuffs as a way to restrain disruptive passengers. Disposable restraints could be considered to be cost-inefficient; they cannot be loosened and must be cut off to permit a restrained subject to be fingerprinted, or to attend to bodily functions. It is not unheard of for a single subject to receiving five or more sets of disposable restraints in his or her first few hours in custody. However, aforementioned usage means that cheap handcuffs are available in situations where steel ones would normally lay unused for long times. Recent products have been introduced that serve to address this concern, including disposable plastic restraints that can be opened or loosened with a key; more expensive than conventional plastic restraints, they can only be used a very limited number of times, and are not as strong as conventional disposable restraints, let alone modern metal handcuffs. In addition, plastic restraints are believed by many to be more likely to inflict nerve or soft-tissue damage to the wearer than metal handcuffs.

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Leg-cuffs (leg-irons)

Standard type leg-cuffs (leg-irons) made in Taiwan

On occasions when a suspect exhibits extremely aggressive behavior, leg irons may be used as well; sometimes the chain connecting the leg irons to one another is looped around the chain of the handcuffs, and then the leg irons are applied, resulting in the person being "hog-tied". In a few rare cases, hog-tied persons lying on their stomachs have died from positional asphyxia, making the practice highly controversial, and leading to its being severely restricted, or even completely banned, in many localities.

Universal handcuff key

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Keys

Most modern handcuffs in Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Latin America can be opened with the same standard universal handcuff key. This allows for easier transport of prisoners and keeps one out of trouble if one loses one's keys. However, there are handcuff makers who use keys based on different standards. Maximum security handcuffs require special keys. Handcuff keys usually do not work with thumb cuffs. The Cuff Lock handcuff key padlock uses this same standard key.

In addition to the Universal handcuff key, a few modified designs exist, including a key that has been molded to fit behind an officer's badge (colloquially known as "The New York Tuning Fork" (U.S Patent 607,305).

Hand Positioning

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Old Handcuffs

In the past, police officers typically handcuffed an arrested person with his or her hands in front, but since approximately the mid-1960s behind-the-back handcuffing has been the standard. The vast majority of police academies in the United States today also teach their recruits to apply handcuffs so that the palms of the suspect's hands face outward after the handcuffs are applied. The Jacksonville, Florida Police Department, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, and others are notable exceptions, as they favor palms-together handcuffing. This helps prevent radial neuropathy or handcuff neuropathy during extended periods of restraint. Suspects are handcuffed with the keyholes facing up (away from the hands) to make it difficult to open them even with a key or improvised lock-pick.

Hinged handcuffs applied behind the back, with palms facing outwards.

Because a person's hands are used in breaking falls, being handcuffed introduces a significant risk of injury if the prisoner trips or stumbles, in addition to injuries sustained from overly tight handcuffs causing Handcuff Neuropathy. Police officers having custody of the person need to be ready to catch a stumbling prisoner.

As soon as restraints go on, the officer has full liability. The risk of the prisoner losing balance is higher if the hands are handcuffed behind the back than if they are handcuffed in front; however, the risk of using fisted hands together as a weapon increases with hands in front.

Some prisoners being transported from custody to outside locations, for appearances at court, to medical facilities, etc., will wear handcuffs augmented with a belly chain. In this type of arrangement a metal, leather, or canvas belt is attached to the waist, sometimes with a locking mechanism. The handcuffs are secured to the belly chain and the prisoner's hands are kept at waist level. This allows a relative degree of comfort for the prisoner during prolonged internment in the securing device while providing a greater degree of restriction to movement than simply placing the handcuffs on the wrists in the front.

Miscellaneous

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Display of old handcuffs, Tatton Park Flower Show, 2010

In Japan, if someone is photographed or filmed while handcuffed, their hands have to be pixelated if it is used on TV or in the newspapers. This is because Kazuyoshi Miura who had been arrested brought a successful case to court arguing that being pictured in handcuffs implied guilt, and had prejudiced the trial. Similarly, in Hong Kong, people being arrested and led away in handcuffs are usually given the chance by the policemen to have their heads covered by a black cloth bag.

Police handcuffs are sometimes used in sexual bondage and BDSM activities. This is potentially unsafe, because they were not designed for this purpose, and their use can result in nerve injury (Handcuff Neuropathy) or other tissue damage. Bondage cuffs were designed specifically for this application. They were designed using the same model of soft restraints used on psychiatric patients because they can be worn for long periods of time. Many such models can be fastened shut with padlocks.

Legcuffs
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Leg cuffs, shackles, footcuffs, fetters or leg irons are a kind of physical restraint used on the feet or ankles to allow walking but prevent running and kicking. They made the leg irons restrict running and kicking so that the prisoners could not fight back. The term "fetter" shares a root with the word "foot".

With respect to humans, typically only prisoners, bondage fetishists, and African American slaves while enslaved wore shackles. Leg shackles are used for chain gangs to keep them together. 

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Chain Gang Street Sweepers, 1909

A shackled animal is typically either a dangerous animal or one prone to escape. Metaphorically, a fetter may be anything that restricts or restrains in any way, hence the word "unfettered".

History

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Cup lock shackle with no built-in lock

The earliest fetters found in archaeological excavations date from the prehistoric age and are mostly of the puzzle lock type. Fetters are also referenced in ancient times in the Bible.

In the Scriptures the Hebrew word necho′sheth, usually meaning “copper,” is frequently translated “fetters of copper” or “copper fetters,” because fetters were often made of copper or bronze, although wood and iron were also employed. (2Sa 3:34; 2Ki 25:7) In the British Museum, there is a pair of bronze fetters from Nineveh (the capital city of ancient Assyria) in the form of a bar with a ring at each end.

Roman times already see a variety of restraint types. Some early versions of cup lock shackles can already be found. These were widely used in medieval times but their use declined when mass production made the manufacture of locks built into restraints affordable.

Simple fetter types continue to be used like puzzle lock shackles as the typical slave iron or irons riveted shut for prisoners being transported to overseas prison camps.

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Standard type leg irons made in Taiwan

The first built-in locks often were of a simple screw-type but soon developed into the "Darby" type. In Europe, these continued to be used into the middle of the 20th century, whereas in the US from the late 19th century onward many new designs were invented and produced before handcuffs and leg irons of the Peerless type became the standard several decades ago.

Controversial use

Heavy leg irons from China, including a metal plate to protect the keyhole from collecting dust or being tampered with

In comparison to handcuffs, the wearing of leg irons may be found less restrictive. Thus the prison authorities in several countries deem their long-term use acceptable. In order to avoid condoning this disputed practice the countries of the European Union have banned exporting leg irons into non-EU countries. The countries that continue to make prisoners wear fetters long term now tend to resort to manufacturing their own restraints.

Thumbcuffs

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A Model Wearing both Thumbcuffs and Handcuffs

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Thumbcuffs Worn as Toecuffs

Thumbcuffs are a metal restraining device that locks thumbs in proximity to each other.

Thumbcuffs were originally intended for use by detectives, narcotics officers and off-duty policemen, their size allowing them to be carried in the pocket. Most are rigid devices, while some used in Asian countries are chain-linked, like miniature handcuffs.

Thumbcuffs are rarely used due to an increased possibility of injury, most commonly by tight cuffs blocking blood circulation. Handcuffs are usually used instead.

Thumbcuffs may also be used as improvised toecuffs by locking the big toes in proximity to each other.

Thumbcuffs with double locks have a lock spring which when engaged, usually using the top of the key, stops the thumb cuff from ratcheting tighter and prevents the subject from tightening them, possibly causing injury. Double locks also make picking the locks more difficult.

Plastic handcuffs
250px Policeman carrying plasticuffs

Policeman Carrying Plastic Handcuffs

Plastic handcuffs (also called PlastiCuffs or FlexiCuffs or Double Cuffs) are a form of physical restraint for the hands, using plastic straps. They function as handcuffs but are cheaper and easier to carry than metal handcuffs; they cannot be reused.

The traditional form of plastic handcuffs are cable ties, either two interlocking straps, or a single cable tie around both wrists. More recently, plastics-manufacturing companies have started to produce special devices comprising two interconnected straps as one item. These are generally injection molded nylon items, selling for tens of cents each. The low cost and light weight of plastic handcuffs have made them popular with police and military forces when they anticipate a large number of arrests, as in riot control or demonstrations. An advantage of disposable restraints is avoidance of transmission of communicable disease; metal handcuffs can spread disease through reuse (from blood or other bodily fluids that may not have been cleaned off the cuffs), disposable restraints are not used on multiple subjects.

If not applied correctly, plastic handcuffs are more uncomfortable than conventional handcuffs for the person being restrained. More care and training are required for the person applying them in order to avoid making them too tight. Some models cannot be double-locked, making it possible for the cuffs to be further tightened after initial application, restricting blood flow to the hands and causing injury to the subject. Another risk of disposable restraints is that a subject of great physical strength and/or under the influence of drugs may be able to break free from them with enough effort. They are also vulnerable to being cut with wire cutters or melted with a cigarette lighter.

Various innovations on the plastic handcuff theme have been developed, including models which can be released using a regular handcuff key, and extremely lightweight restraints made from nylon cord, using a plastic device to hold the cord tight.


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Leather Nipper/Come Along

Baltimore Police Department
242 W. 29th St., Baltimore, MD.
Emergencies: 9-1-1  Non-emergencies: 410-396-2037
BALTIMORE POLICE Web Site: http://www.baltimorepolice.org 

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Again please contact Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll if you have pictures of you, your family, or other members of the Baltimore Police Department and wish to see them remembered here on this tribute site. We are anxious to honor the fine men and women who have served this fine police department. Ret. Det. Kenny Driscoll can be reached at  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. - Like us on Facebook, or contact us for a mailing address 

Copyright © 2002 Baltimore City Police History - Ret Det Kenny Driscoll

Published in Honesty

Marshal Samuel T. Hamilton

Friday, 10 January 2020 04:45
Marshal Samuel T. Hamilton

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Marshal Samuel T. Hamilton

On October 7, 1897, Capt. Samuel T. Hamilton was elected Marshal of Police to succeed Marshal Jacob Frey. Marshal Hamilton was a veteran officer of the Civil War and a man of indisputable courage and integrity. For many years following the great civil conflict he had served on the Western frontier and took part in the unremitting campaigns against the Sioux and other Indian tribes, that were constantly waging war upon the settlers and pioneers as they pushed their way toward the setting sun, building towns and railroads and trying to conquer the wilderness and its natural dwellers. In the Sioux campaign of 1876, when Gen. George A. Custer and his command, outnumbered ten to one by the Indians in the valley of the Little Big Horn were annihilated, Captain Hamilton and his troop rode day and night in a vain effort to re-enforce Custer and his sorely pressed men. It was on June 26, 1876, the Seventh United States Cavalry rode and fought to their deaths, and on the 27 of the same month, just 1 day after the battle at Little Big Horn, the reinforcements arrived, exhausted from their terrific ride across the country. Captain Hamilton and his troops fought through the rest of the campaign, which resulted in Sitting Bull, the great Indian war chief, being driven across the Canadian frontier. Marshal Hamilton brought to his office pronounced ideas of a semi-military discipline for the police, (what is called today a paramilitary organization) and it may be said that many of the military forms which were adopted under his administration have been of great service to the Department in the matter of the individual carriage and conduct of the members when on the street. Ex-Marshal Hamilton, after ceasing his connection with the Police Department, was raised to the rank of Major in the United States Army and granted a pension commensurate with that rank. Accustomed to an active life, he requested the War Department to give him employment, and he was assigned to take charge of the army recruiting district, with headquarters in Harrisburg, Pa., where he died in 1906.

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Jacob Frey served as Marshal from Oct 15, 1885 - Jul 12, 1897

On July 12, 1897, the active connection of Marshal Jacob Frey with the Police Department ceased. On October 7, 1897, Capt. Samuel T.Hamilton was elected Marshal of Police to succeed Marshal Frey. Marshal Hamilton was a veteran officer of the Civil War and a man of indisputable courage and integrity. For many years following the great civil conflict he had served on the Western frontier and took part in the unremitting campaigns against the Sioux and other Indian tribes, who were constantly waging war upon the settlers and pioneers as they pushed their way toward the setting sun, building towns and railroads and trying to conquer the wilderness and its natural dwellers. In the Sioux campaign of 1876, when Gen. George A. Custer and his gallant command, outnumbered ten to one by the Indians in the valley of the Little Big Horn, were annihilated, Captain Hamilton and his troop rode day and night in a vain effort to re-enforce Custer and his sorely pressed men. It was on June 26, 1876, the Seventh United States Cavalry rode and fought to their deaths, and on June 27, the day following, the reinforcements arrived, exhausted from their terrific ride across the country. Captain Hamilton and his troop fought through the rest of the campaign, which resulted in Sitting Bull, the great Indian war chief, being driven across the Canadian frontier.

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MARSHAL THOMAS F. FARNAN

Marshal Thomas F. Farnan, the present head of the Baltimore Police Department, has rounded out forty years' continuous service as a policeman. Looking back on the splendid record made by this ideal chief of a police force that is considered one of, if not the best, in the country, one is impressed with the belief that Thomas F. Farnan was born to be a policemen and that he was particularly destined to fill the responsible position he now occupies. Entering the police service on April 30, 1867, Marshal Farnan step by step climbed the ladder of promotion until, on August 8, 1902, he reached the summit and by the unanimous vote of the Board of Police Commissioners, Messrs. George M. Upshur, John T. Morris and Edward H. Fowler, was appointed Marshal of Police, to succeed Marshal S. T. Hamilton, whose commission had expired seven months before that date. From the time that Marshal Hamilton's commission expired until the date of his final promotion Deputy Marshal Farnan was to all practical purposes the Marshal of Police of the city, for he exercised all the functions of that office.

Not only this humble volume but the future histories of Baltimore City will give Thomas F. Farnan a prominent place in their pages. During his administration the great fire of February 7, 1904, swept Baltimore's great business district, laying in ruins over 70 blocks of the commercial section of the city. From the time the first alarm was sounded until three months afterward Marshal Farnan was practically on duty day and night. Now, and in after years, Baltimoreans can appreciate what the head of the Police Department did for the protection of the lives and property during those days that tried men's souls. By day and night, the Marshal of Police was seemingly tireless. Walking and riding over the city, whom he had stationed at dangerous points, guarding with the faithfulness of a watch dog the great trust imposed upon him, losing sleep and rest without a murmur, Thomas F. Farnan stands out against the lurid light of the flames and smoke a truly heroic figure. Lest the reader should think that this tribute is overdrawn, the writer can truthfully say that he is acquainted with his subject from the closest and most personal kind of observation. For many days and many nights he was thrown constantly with the Marshal, watched his untiring efforts for the protection of the public, made the rounds with him over smoking and blistering ruins and day by day saw more threads of white silvering the head of the man who was throwing his whole body, thought, soul and action into accomplishing the great task which fate had thrown upon him. It was no uncommon thing in the four weeks following the fire for the Marshal to enter his private office, sit down at his desk and then fall asleep from utter physical exhaustion. It was at those times that his office force and those whom duty had gathered around him moved softly and talked in whispers, grateful that the Marshal was able to snatch even a "cat nap." In their hearts they would wish that the district call bells would not ring and that the telephones for the moment would be silent. It is a picture that comes before the writer with wonderful distinctness, the greying hair, the strong face, furrowed from thought and loss of rest, the exhausted pose, as with head resting on his hand, he leaned on the desk under the full glare of the electric light. Then would come the jangling call of a station house bell, or some subordinate officer would telephone in for directions. The call would hardly sound through the room than the Marshal would be on his feet to answer it personally, for in those days he exercised a personal direction of details that was truly amazing. The work accomplished by the Marshal during and after the fire extended a reputation that was becoming national, and when he attended the convention of the National Police Chiefs in the June following, the heads of every police force in the country, represented at that notable gathering, crowded around him and congratulated him on the manner in which he had protected his city and people during their great trial by fire. Thomas F. Farnan was born in Baltimore on March 15, 1846. After a few years in the public schools his parents sent him to Calvert Hall, but scholastic affairs were not much to his liking. He wanted to earn his own living, and finally, seeing that he was determined, his parents allowed him to get a position as errand boy in a music store. When he was 18 years old Thomas F. Farnan was apprenticed to a carpenter, and later he became a millwright.

On April 30, 1867, he received his commission as a policeman and was assigned to the Southern District. On February 1, 1870, he was promoted to the grade of sergeant, and a year later was made lieutenant of the Southern District. It was while serving in this position that the future Marshal began showing the police ability which has forced him steadily upward in his profession. On October 15, 1885, Lieutenant Farnan was promoted as captain of the Southern District, but he only remained in that district one day, and on October 16 was placed in command of the Central District, which was then, as it is now, the most important district in the city. When Deputy Marshal Lannan's post became vacant in 1893, Captain Farnan became Deputy Marshal under Marshal Jacob Frey. From that period until August 8, 1902, Deputy Marshal Farnan ably and efficiently acted as assistant to the Marshal, and at many times was acting Marshal of the city. A few days before Deputy Marshal Farnan received his appointment to the highest office in the Department the Commissioners had elected Police Magistrate J. McKenney White to the position. Justice White did not qualify nor receive his commission, as, convinced that he did not have the qualifications to make him a successful Marshal of Police, he informed the Commissioners by telegraph that he could not serve.

It was significant of the feeling of the entire Department that when the Marshal received his appointment and the members of the force wished to testify their appreciation of his final promotion that they sent him a huge floral ladder, the rungs of which were lettered. The first rung was inscribed "Patrolman," while the highest rung bore the inscription "Marshal of Police."

If Thomas F. Farnan has made a good chief of police, his record as a patrolman, sergeant, lieutenant and captain shows equally as well. One of his first cases was that of George Moore, alias Woods, a notorious thief and desperate character. Capt. Wallace Clayton, of the schooner Pringy, docked at Bowley’s Wharf, was assaulted and robbed one night and the thieves cut out one of his eyes. The assault and robbery aroused a great deal of indignation, and though the thieves left no clue behind, Patrolman Farnan worked assiduously on the case for nearly a year, struck a trail finally and arrested Woods. The suspect denied the crime, but Captain Clayton positively identified him as one of his assailants, and, with the evidence collected by the young officer who had been on his track, Moore, alias Woods, was convicted and sent to the Maryland Penitentiary for fifteen years. One night when the Marshal was a sergeant, he met a man who was deaf and dumb. The man, who was a giant in stature and muscle, had committed an assault. Sergeant Farnan placed him under arrest, but the subject suddenly wheeled about, caught the Sergeant's arm and threw him over his shoulder as though he was a sack of potatoes.

With both his hands held by the giant, the sergeant was at his mercy. Without apparent effort the man climbed up the stairs of a house in the neighborhood until he reached the attic, Sergeant Farnan found himself face to face with three other men whom he knew to be men of desperate character. Realizing his position, the sergeant told the three men that if they did not assist him in arresting the deaf and dumb subject, he would hound every one of them if he got away alive. The men knew Sergeant Farnan and felt they had better take sides with him. Throwing themselves on their former companion, they grappled with him while Sergeant Farnan tried to snap the nippers around his wrists. Struggling, the five men pitched down the steep stairway together. The struggle on the staircase was more than its crumbling, ramshackle supports could stand, and it gave way. The mass of humanity, of which the sergeant was a part, rolled out on the sidewalk, and the sergeant, as he struggled, managed to rap on the sidewalk with his espantoon. Other policemen responded, and it took eight of them to land the man in the Southern Station. Guilford alley, at that time one of the worst localities in South Baltimore, was a portion of Patrolman Farnan's post, and the first night he spent in that neighborhood he made sixteen arrests. There were no patrol wagons in those days, and the young officer was obliged to literally fight and drag his prisoners to the station. One of the most eventful periods of the Marshal's life was during the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad riots of 1877, when he was a lieutenant in the Southern District, under command of Captain Delanty. Lieutenant Farnan was placed on guard at Camden Station with a force of but three men. When the Fifth Regiment arrived at Camden Station the mob threw stones at the soldiers and Lieutenant Farnan saw one of the mob leaders hurl a large paving stone. At once he seized the man and put him under arrest, although his fellow officers begged him not to try and get his prisoner through the crowd. "I have arrested him and will take him to the station," said the lieutenant, and started with his prisoner. The mob made a rush for him. Women called from the windows overlooking the scene and begged the young officer to take refuge indoors and save himself from being wounded or killed. Shouted at and threatened by the mob, Lieutenant Farnan kept his head, but as the crowd pressed around him, he realized that he must impress them with his determination. Drawing his pistol, he pressed it against the head of his prisoner. "You men," he cried to the mob, "if this man is a friend of yours, you had better keep back." Then turning to his prisoner, he told him if he did not tell the mob that he was willing to go to the station he would blow his brains out. Thoroughly frightened, the man told the crowd he was perfectly willing to go with his captor. The crowd withdrew and Lieutenant Farnan was the only policeman who got through the mob with a prisoner. During the forty years he has been in the police service Marshal Farnan has received only one reprimand, and that came from an old Irish woman during the Cathedral Centenary. The Marshal had a large force of police on hand to see that the crowd was kept orderly and did not infringe upon the space set apart for the Church, State and municipal dignitaries. One little group stood in a place that was especially reserved, and the Marshal walked over to them and politely requested them to move forward. "Oh, go on, Tommy Farnan, and don't get smart with those who knew yez when yez was a boy. We've got as much right here as you have," exclaimed the old lady. "That's right," replied the Marshal, "but if you'll walk over here with me, I'll show you where you can see everything and not be in the way," and he conducted the little party of sightseers to a point of sightseeing vantage. "You always were a good boy, Tommy," said the old lady, and the Marshal smiled under his gray moustache as she continued, " I 'm sorry I spoke cross to yez, and don't let it worry yez, darlint." So, the Marshal smiled at his first reprimand and its quick withdrawal. Incidentally, and in connection with the Cathedral Centenary, it may be remarked that Cardinal Gibbons is a personal friend and admirer of Baltimore's Marshal of Police. Only a short time ago the distinguished Churchman said: "In these days, when the press is full of articles regarding the acceptance of bribes by public officials and the wrong conduct of those who have been commissioned to high offices of public trust, there has never been the slightest hint of stigma cast upon Thomas F. Farnan, the head of the Baltimore Police Department. He is a splendid and efficient official and his work and memory should in future days be remembered and honored by his fellow citizens." Marshal Farnan is a practical policeman and not a mere man of theory. He believes in a strict order of police discipline, but he has no fads and frills. He asks, demands, that his subordinates do their full duty, and if they are lax, negligent or disobedient, he quickly brings them to book. The policeman who makes a mistake or is guilty of an indiscretion, and admits it to his chief, finds a willing and kindly listener, a critical one, perhaps, but one who knows from long experience the difficulties, temptations and trials of those who wear the blue uniform and brass buttons. To such the Marshal is a kindly adviser. To Police Headquarters come many complaints against officers. Sometimes these complaints are well founded and at other times they emanate from political sources or from individuals who are incensed because subordinate members of the Department insist upon them obeying the laws. When complaints are received the Marshal makes a full investigation before reporting them to the Board of Commissioners. If the complaint is justified, the policeman is haled before the Board and asked to explain his conduct. If the Marshal finds that the complaints are not justified, or are laid because of politics or other interests, he is quick to discover their true meaning. Every man in the Department knows that its head will always support him as long as he does his duty and conducts himself as "an officer and a gentleman." The Marshal generally knows how to properly judge a policeman, for one learns many things in an experience of forty years on the police force of a large city. Forty years' experience as a policeman has made the Marshal very astute, a little doubtful of human nature, but has never hardened him. He is grim and stern enough with the professional criminal, but to the youth, or unfortunate, who has committed his first crime and has fallen into the hands of the police, he is always kindly, though absolutely rigid in carrying out the law. "Many criminals do wrong by choice," said the Marshal recently, "but there are some who are almost forced into a criminal life, because of their surroundings and other circumstances. I believe in treating all of them fairly and justly. The days when prisoners could be treated brutally by the officials who had them in charge have passed, and it is well they have, for it shows that the world is becoming really civilized and less brutal. I believe in police officers taking their prisoners 'in' at any cost. Once a policeman takes a man into custody, he should never let him go until he lands him in the station. If in doing this he is obliged to use his espantoon, or even his revolver, I believe he is justified, but he should never pull, haul or roughly handle a prisoner simply because he is an officer and wears the police badge of authority. In these days, I am glad to say, people recognize the law and its officers and there are but few cases of men resisting arrest and being clubbed for their resistance." In his domestic life the Marshal sets an example to the members of the force he directs and to Baltimoreans in general. His home—and it is a home in every sense of the word—is on Lombard street, near Fremont. Rid, if even for a short time, of the cares of office, he makes for his own fireside with the rapidity of a carrier pigeon seeking its loft, for awaiting him is the wife and mother who has been his domestic mainstay and companion for nearly 40 years. Then, in the soothing atmosphere that arises from his own hearthstone, the Marshal is no longer the grim chief of police, but the affectionate husband, the thoughtful head of the family, the father—yes, and grandfather, for the third generation of Farnan’s gather around him, climb on his shoulders and toy with the gilded badge that is an insignia of honor the Police Department or who is at all familiar with the force and its methods of operating and working. That he has been able to accomplish so much is due in a large measure to the fact that in all questions relating to the police or to the protection of the public from accidents and the attacks of criminals or evilly disposed persons the Deputy Marshal and Marshal Farnan, his chief, work in perfect unison. Not only are the Marshal and his Deputy close official associates, but they are very warm personal friends. Each appears to know instinctively the ideas of the other and to agree with them and this creates a harmony of action and effect that cannot but be of benefit to the whole Department and to the interests of life and property that it safeguards. Deputy Marshal Manning has inaugurated and put into effect several new ideas in connection with his work at Police Headquarters. He takes a great interest in statistics in matters that relate to the Police Department and the public. During the past year he has put into operation a system by which the records of all murders, suicides and accidents, fatal and otherwise, are tabulated and are monthly given to the public through the medium of the daily newspapers. The duties of Deputy Marshal Manning are manifold. In case of the sickness or absence from the city of the Marshal he exercises full command over the force. He must attend the Marshal's office and assist the Marshal by attending to such parts of his duties as the latter may designate. When his services are not required for the performance of such duties, he must inspect the members of the force on duty in the streets and he must daily visit as many of the station houses as practicable. He must repair in person to all serious or extensive fires in the City of Baltimore and to all riotous and tumultuous assemblages, and, if the Marshal is not present, take charge of the police and act as the Marshal. The Deputy Marshal has, under the direction of the Marshal, supervision over the police patrol boat, its officers and crews, and must see that proper care is taken of the vessel, its machinery and equipment. Connected with these specific duties there are thousands of details that are quickly grasped and disposed of by the second in command of the force.

The Deputy Marshal is comparatively a young man, and it required him just a little over 20 years to work his way to the highest position in the Police Department under the civil service, for the Marshal is  appointed for a term of four years by the Police Board.

The Deputy's parents, Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Jeannette Manning, were Scotch-Irish. They lived in Seneca county, New York, where the Deputy first saw the light of day. He was born on October 1, 1855. When a youngster he attended the Catholic schools of the parishes in which he lived. When he was 12 years old his mother moved to Baltimore, and for two more years James Manning attended school here. Although he worked, he attended night school. Later he took a course at Eaton & Burnett's Business College. At the age of 15 he began to learn goldbeating, and his relatives thought he would continue to pound away in the little shop for the rest of his life. Despite the fact that the present Deputy Marshal looks and is the picture of health, he was not so fortunate in his younger days. He gave up goldbeating and went to work as a clerk for Messrs. Tyson & Bro., grain merchants. But this, too, disagreed with him and his health became so bad that Mr. Manning got up every morning and took long walks for exercise, lack of which caused his trouble. He put in his application for a place on the police force and said that if he had been subjected to such a rigid examination then as the men are now, he would probably have been rejected. One day in April 1882, he was notified of his appointment, and that night he reported at the Western Police Station for duty. Captain Lepson, then at the Western, took a liking to the young officer. After he had been on the force some time the Captain wanted him to become turnkey. He pointed out that the duties would not be hard, that his clothes would not cost so much, and that he would not be exposed to such rough weather. His friends told young Manning he was little short of crazy for not accepting the position, but Patrolman Manning wished to elevate himself, and he realized that he could only climb the ladder by getting good cases. It was not long before he displayed marked ability. Though he had made many arrests, the first very important case that came his way occurred in November 1887, when he arrested James Johnson, a burglar. Johnson was regarded as a dangerous man, because he was always heavily armed, and his peculiar specialty was robbing houses while the occupants were asleep. He expected to be shot at if caught in the act, so he went prepared to give battle. One morning two houses on Saratoga street were robbed, and a long Newmarket overcoat was among the things stolen. A few hours after the report was made at the police station Patrolman Manning went to a pawnshop to warn the broker about the stolen articles. As he was entering the place, he saw Johnson pawning an overcoat. While he did not know the man, he felt that the coat was the one for which he was looking. Johnson, in the meantime, had gotten out the door, but he was overtaken. When searched at the station house sufficient evidence was found in the suspect's pockets to connect him with eleven cases of burglary. He was sent to the Maryland Penitentiary for nine years. On February 6 of the following year Manning arrested Frank Sullivan and Ned Spurrier, charged with assaulting and robbing Mr. Jacob Eakle, of Hagerstown. Patrolman Manning was on day duty at the time and was notified one afternoon that an old man from the country had been beaten and robbed on his post in broad daylight. Being young and energetic, the patrolman felt that he must get the case, or his superiors would think the grass was growing under his feet. He hurried to Pratt and Penn streets, where the holdup took place, and saw the old man, with blood streaming down his face from the blows of his assailants. Then he felt a slight tug at his coat sleeve. He turned and saw a small boy, who led him aside. The youngster said he had seen the robbery and had just passed the highwaymen on Fremont street. With his diminutive assistant, Manning ran to Fremont street, where the youngster pointed out two men. Realizing that the men would run if they had the opportunity, Patrolman Manning ran as lightly as possible and burst between the men. Before they had recovered from the shock of the collision a strong hand clutched both of their collars. At the patrol box Sullivan became unruly.

He twisted Patrolman Manning's thumb back until he dislocated it, but the officer did not release his hold. Though the agony was intense, he did not say a word in complaint, as no one in the crowd would at first aid him. When it seemed that Sullivan would surely get away the prisoner became crazed. He kicked at the crowd and acted so that he came near being mobbed. When the men were searched at the police station Mr. Eakle's watch was taken from Sullivan. Then the young patrolman was given the position of telephone man in the police station, and this valuable experience has stood him in great stead. On March 31, 1888, he was promoted to sergeant, and on August 21, 1891, he was again promoted. It was while a round sergeant that the Deputy waged a war on gambling houses and violators of the liquor law. One of the best raids he ever made was upon a gambling joint in the Western District which had a cigar store front. The store was closed about 9 o'clock every night, and the players used the second floor. Two complaints had been made about the place, both persons declaring they had been fleeced. Early one morning, when all the players had left the building, Round Sergeant Manning and the present Lieutenant Poulton talked the matter over. Manning said he wanted to get into the house to "get the lay of the land," so he climbed the back fence and, with the aid of a ladder, crawled through a second-story window. He made his investigations and looked for the best point to attack, and found it in the kitchen, which, he discovered, was not used. Everything in the room was covered with dust, and the windows and shutters were bolted. The bolts were slid, and the shutters unlatched. Two or three nights later the cigar store was closed, but the lights in the second story were so bright that the "Rounder" knew there was a big game on. He got his squad of raiders and climbed the back fence. Having removed their shoes, the policemen crept into the kitchen, after one of the men had climbed through the kitchen window.

Round Sergeant Manning knew where the game was, so he started to crawl toward it in the darkness. Suddenly he became aware that a sentry stood on the landing above him. "We've got to run for it," he shouted to Poulton, and they reached the sentry's side and clutched him by the throat before he could say a word. The man was too surprised to yell. When they saw the officers in uniform the players were dumfounded. As a round sergeant the Deputy was well informed regarding the Chinese in Chinatown, and he made several raids. One was on Bow Sing's place, in Marion street. Numerous complaints had been made against the dive, and the Deputy started out one night to raid it. He knew the house was barred and provided with signals to warn the gamblers. He knew also that no one could gain entrance until he had shown his face to the doorkeeper, who looked through a glass panel.

Finally, he decided upon a plan. He took his men into the rear yard of a house occupied by several bad characters, which was next door to the dive. All the occupants were kept under surveillance to keep them from warning Bow Sing and his guests. Then, with the door of the house opened just far enough for him to see what was going on, the Deputy waited. Soon a young Chinaman came along, and, thinking no one was in sight, gave the mystic sign and the door was opened. Before the Chinaman could step across the threshold the Deputy had knocked him sprawling and dashed into the den. The gamblers were fined and the Chinaman who was knocked down was ostracized by his fellow-countrymen. In another Chinese raid Round Sergeant Manning dashed into the "joint" and took it by storm. He was in citizen's clothes, and the Chinamen could not stop him until he was alongside of the gaming table, about which 50 Chinamen were seated. The other members of the raiding party were locked out, and the Deputy was left in the den with the gamblers, but no one made an attempt to injure him.

The only time the Deputy's life was in actual danger was when he arrested Lewis Stewart, a young man who lived in South Baltimore some years ago. Stewart and a girl friend had been at a ball and quarreled on the street. Patrolman Nicholson ordered them to move on, and Stewart turned on the officer and shot at him. Round Sergeant Manning was coming down the street, and Stewart approached him with the pistol in his hand. In a minute the young man found himself on his back, but as Manning looked down at his prisoner, he found the muzzle of the pistol staring him in the face. With a quick movement of his hand the round sergeant pushed the young man's hand away just as the weapon was fired. His good work as round sergeant earned promotion, and he was sent to the Central District, where his opportunities were greater. Later he was sent to the Northwestern District, and on April 6, 1898, he was promoted to lieutenant. His good working the house won a captaincy for him August 6, 1900, and he was assigned to the Northeastern District. When he took command, the district needed a strict disciplinarian, and he was the right man for the place. Soon his men began to see him in the district at midnight and at all hours. They met him here, there and everywhere. As a result, everybody worked hard. The most daring piece of work Manning did as captain was to arrange with ex-City Councilman John Stone to be held up on Sinclair Lane, a dark walk in the northeastern suburbs. It was learned that Herbert Carter, alias John Smith, and Llewellen Winslow, alias Louis Keene, had planned to rob Mr. Stone. Mr. Stone was in the coal business, and his receipts Saturday night were said to be large. These he carried home with him and the two young men, it was said, intended to rob him. Captain Manning sent for Mr. Stone and told him of the plan. He got Mr. Stone to consent to be held up. When the hold-up took place Detective Dougherty, Round Sergeant Arbin, Round Sergeant Leverton and several other policemen were nearby. The hold-up was not successful because the officers fired at the men too soon. In the chase which followed one man got away but was caught later. Each man was given nine years in the Maryland Penitentiary. When Marshal Farnan was appointed, Captain Manning took the examination for the Deputy Marshalship. He passed with a high percentage and was promoted. Since that time, he has been out of the limelight, except when Marshal Farnan goes away, when he takes up the reins and handles the affairs of the Department.

 

Published in MV

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