Defiance City Police Force, 1916 - 1917

For many years, Lloyd V. Tuttle contributed historic photos and information to the Defiance Crescent-News for his column, "A Backward Glance."
On March 5, 1963, Tuttle wrote about the Defiance police force, a small, but dedicated group of men.

"Here is a picture of the Defiance police force in 1916 - 1917 when Edward S. Bronson was serving his first term as mayor.  Note that the helmets have been discarded for caps.

Reading from left to right, lower row, are: Charles Miller, patrolman; Julius Spengler, chief; Gus Wahl, patrolman and
back row, Henry Hall, patrolman; S. A. Craven, safety director; Mayor Bronson, and Frank Baker, patrolman

The patrolmen were paid $60 per month.  They worked seven days a week, and extra time when required.  The mayor's salary during this era was $700 annually.  Each patrolman walked all over his assigned ward.  The chief did duty downtown during the day and was always on call."