|
  |
|
|
Early Police Work Required Tough Officers
Before 1881, Lynchburg was policed by a group of loosely organized plainclothes officers and watchmen. Records before this time are rare, but Lynchburg had a courthouse and a jail, so it is thought that some semblance of a police force was available. It is believed that a sheriff and deputies worked during the day and watchmen took over at night. In 1870, the first uniforms were bought for the chief and 10 privates. However, the city did not adequately support the officers and after the annual police payroll fell from $13,000 to $7,000, the city decided to reorganize.
In 1881, A.H. Pettigrew was named chief. One of his first officers was James p. Cochran, who described his job in an early 20th Century edition of The News. Cochran, who was with the force from 1883 to 1888, said officers’ shifts ran from 6 p.m. until 6 a.m., when the day shift began. At that time, 13 officers worked the city at night and five worked during the day. “Every week they changed the five day men over to night and took five off night duty for day jobs,” Cochran said.
“A man was supposed to work every night. He was paid $1.75 a night and once a year he got a weeks vacation. While he was gone, he was supposed to hire a substitute to take his place. Cochran told the paper his most thrilling moments came when he saved a woman from a blazing boarding house, and the despondent young man who had stuffed chloroform soaked cloth under his nose in an attempt to commit suicide. The man later succeeded. He also related the time he was sin the greatest danger.
He was looking for a man who reportedly shot three men during a quarrel on Ninth Street. Police had a tip that the suspect, Jim Scott, wanted for murder and felonious assault, was working on a “cinder snapper” at a blast furnace near Natural Bridge. Cochran said he and Officer John M. Seay (who later became chief) went to get him at 6 a.m. on day during the Christmas holiday week. Seay hid near a furnace and Cochran said he crept over to where he thought the suspect was working. The man was caught and later, when they were back in Lynchburg, Cochran learned he was walking around shallow pits that were white hot from molten slag. “If I had made a wrong step of even a few inches I would’ve fallen into hell.” To make matters worse, the prisoner turned out to be the wrong man.
|
|
 |
|
No reactions yet.
Please login or sign up to rate this intel.
Please login or sign up to add a comment.
The copyright for this content entitled "Early Police Work Required Tough Officers" has been specified by the contributor as:
All Rights Reserved
This content may not be copied, distributed or adapted by anyone under any circumstances.
|
|
May, 2012
2008
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2009
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2010
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2011
January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December
2012
January, February, March, April, May
|
|
Not a member yet?
Qondio is a powerful network for making it online. If you have a website to
promote, we can help.
Sign up and get in on the action.
|
|
Welcome to Qondio! Discover the awesome power this network can deliver by going to our About page. Or you could skip straight to the Sign Up form.
|
|
