National Law Enforcement Museum Blog

30th Anniversary of the Air Florida Flight 90 Crash

2012-01-13T12:52:00.004-05:00

Today marks the 30th anniversary of the devastating Air Florida Flight 90 plane crash into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, DC, that killed 78 individuals, including four motorists on the bridge.

The footage above from The Washington Post reflects on the crash and shows footage from the dramatic rescue from the icy waters under the bridge. The helicopter seen in the video, Eagle 1, manned by pilot Donald W. Usher, and paramedic Melvin E. Windsor, was crucial to the rescuing the five survivors of the initial crash.

The National Law Enforcement Museum is currently in talks with the National Park Service and United States Park Police to include Eagle 1 in the National Law Enforcement Museum. Eagle 1 would hang prominently near the Museum’s entry staircase, over the To Protect & Serve exhibit, near the entrance of the Hall of Remembrance.

While this crash captured Washington’s attention, there are many law enforcement agencies around the country with helicopter units that could share their own stories of harrowing rescues. The Museum salutes all those whose law enforcement service takes them to the skies under dangerous life and death circumstances and welcomes artifacts from other agencies related to their helicopter, search and rescue or disaster response units.

Follow the Museum's progress at www.LawEnforcementMuseum.org.

More information about the Air Florida plan crash and anniversary is available at:http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/30-years-after-air-florida-crash-skies-safer-than-ever/2012/01/05/gIQAW0GwtP_story.html
http://www.wusa9.com/news/article/184389/158/Air-Florida-Flight-90-Crash-30th-Anniversary
http://www.nps.gov/uspp/avipag.htm

Artifact Detective: Rite-Line Paper Holder

2011-11-21T15:23:00.000-05:00

Please help us uncover some of the stories behind our objects. Leave a comment with anything you may know about the featured item. We welcome all information, and we’d appreciate sources and citations when possible. Thanks!

What we know:

This item belonged to Rita Trombly Manning when she worked for the FBI from the 1940s to 1970s.

We know Ms. Trombly worked as a stenographer, someone who takes notes in shorthand, in various departments, including the Records and Communications Division and the Crime Records Division.

A note included with the object says, “Device allows you to insert an already typed paper and add another line to it.”

Office supply: Rite-Line Copy Holder. 2011.12.6 Collection of the National Law Enforcement Museum, Washington, D.C.

What we want to know:

What is the primary purpose of this device?

How does this object work with a piece of paper?

What year was this item made and in what years was it used?

Was this an everyday office supply?

Was this a common office supply for law enforcement offices?

If you have any information about this object or own an object similar to this, leave us a comment!

Detroit Red Wings Host Law Enforcement Appreciation Night

2011-11-15T11:36:00.002-05:00

On November 8, 2011 the Detroit Red Wings hosted their Second Annual Law Enforcement Appreciation Night at the Joe Louis Arena, donating $10.00 from each ticket sold to the National Law Enforcement Museum. That night 1,863 tickets were sold, raising over $18,630 to help build the Museum. The Museum held a 50/50 raffle and auction which raised an additional $500 for the Museum, bringing the total raised to $19,130.

FLEOA National President Jon Adler
rides on the zamboni during intermission.

Before the game, there was a moment of silence and Amazing Grace was performed by The Metro Detroit Police and Fire Pipes and Drums, headed by Dearborn (MI) Police Department, Detective Sergeant (ret) Gary Marchetti. National Colors were presented by the Michigan State FOP.

Special thanks to John Shanks, Director of Development and Law Enforcement Relations, Jon Adler, FLEOA National President and Memorial Fund Board Member as well as Brent Clark, Law Enforcement Ambassador for helping with the event. In addition, the Museum would like to thank the Detroit Red Wings for honoring all of America’s law enforcement heroes and helping build the National Law Enforcement Museum.

Read more at:
http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/photos?gameId=400046956&photoId=1673156
http://redwings.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=599695

National Law Enforcement Museum Co-hosts J. Edgar Premiere

2011-11-09T13:43:00.000-05:00

Last night, the National Law Enforcement Museum co-hosted the Washington, DC premiere of Clint Eastwood's film, J. Edgar at the Newseum.

Mr. Eastwood, Honorary Chairman of the National Law Enforcement Museum and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund gathered alongside special guests and dignitaries to promote J. Edgar. The film examines the compelling life of the first FBI Director, J. Edgar Hoover, portrayed by actor Leonardo DiCaprio.

“Law enforcement is a very underrated profession — so many have given so much. The dangers are always there and we’re thankful for the people who keep us safe. Embracing the idea of shooting a film about J. Edgar Hoover was quite an interesting project because he was such an interesting man and there’s always been a lot of discussion around him,” Mr. Eastwood said in his remarks before the premiere of the film.

In 2010, the J. Edgar Hoover Foundation donated over 5,000 items from Director Hoover's estate, including office desk, chair and telephone, presentation items, awards, photographs, correspondence, books, recordings of his speeches, and numerous other items that relate to his personal and professional life, including his tenure as director of the FBI from 1924 to 1972.

The National Law Enforcement Museum is the official repository of Mr. Hoover’s collection of personal effects, and select artifacts from the extensive collection were on display during the movie premiere. Guests were given a first-hand glimpse of such items as Director Hoover’s desk and desk accessories; original photographs from his childhood, as well as his years as FBI Director; and handwritten notes from his days as a law student at George Washington University.

The National Law Enforcement Museum will include the J. Edgar Hoover Research Center, made possible through a generous donation from the J. Edgar Hoover Foundation.

“Many Americans probably do not know that it was Mr. Hoover who required FBI agents to advise criminal suspects of their constitutional rights prior to arrest —15 years before the Supreme Court required Miranda warnings. He also instituted many other innovations including a centralized fingerprint file, forensics laboratories, a national compilation of crime statistics, and the FBI National Academy to increase effectiveness of state and local law enforcement,” Mr. Floyd stated as he addressed the audience before the film.

Read the full press release from the event at: http://www.nleomf.org/newsroom/news-releases/museum/the-national-law-enforcement-1.html
All photos from the event are available at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nleomf/sets/72157627966283637/

Law Enforcement Museum Loans Artifact to Local Museum

2011-04-26T13:30:00.002-04:00

Earlier this year, the National Law Enforcement Museum signed its first-ever loan agreement with another museum. The Newseum, located in downtown Washington, D.C., is exhibiting a trial pass issued to J. Edgar Hoover to attend the 1942 trial of Nazi saboteurs who were part of a spy ring that was investigated and caught under Hoover's supervision by the FBI that year. The trial pass is a part of the larger Hoover Collection, which contains over 5,000 objects from the estate of J. Edgar Hoover. This is a milestone of sorts for the Museum. When a new museum loans artifacts to another museum, the new museum begins to establish its identity in the larger community of museums and makes the artifacts accessible to a wider audience.

Trial pass for J. Edgar Hoover, 1942. 2010.11. Collection of the National Law Enforcement Museum, Washington, D.C.

The National Law Enforcement Museum is a work still in progress. The building is designed but not yet built; the exhibits have been planned but not yet constructed. The artifact collections, however, are tangible and real and inform the design, content, and programming of what the Museum will soon become. The collections of the Museum currently number almost 15,000 objects, documents, and photographs. By the time the Museum opens its doors in late 2013, the collections will be accessible to the public in a number of ways, including exhibits, publications, behind-the-scenes tours, and other educational programs.

The collections of the Museum are unique in that that they tell the national story of American law enforcement. In the United States, law enforcement is not a nationalized institution, and the agencies that make up law enforcement span the local, state, and federal continuum. The National Law Enforcement Museum will be the first place for other educational institutions, academicians, and researchers to come to learn the larger, national history of American law enforcement. Having Museum artifacts on exhibit in other museums serves the community by increasing public access to and awareness of law enforcement’s legacy. Loaning artifacts also serves to build collaborative partnerships with museums across the country.

Artifact Detective: Lead Figurines

2011-02-15T16:27:00.000-05:00

This Artifact Detective post was contributed by Sarah Dieter, Collections Management Intern.

What we know:
Two of the figurines are holding pistols and two are holding Tommy guns.
All four figurines are in excellent condition and were purchased together.

Toys, lead figurines of police officers holding pistol and Tommy gun, man in beige holding pistol, man in gray holding Tommy gun, unknown date. 2006.423.1-4. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

What we want to know:
When were these toys produced and by whom?
Were the figurines originally sold all together or separately?
Were more figurines originally part of this set?
Are these characters from a movie or television show? If so, which one?
What kinds of lessons do you think someone might learn from playing with these figurines?

If you have any information about this object or own an object similar to this, leave us a comment!

Seeing Double for Thanksgiving

2010-11-23T16:22:00.002-05:00

With the winter holidays upon us, we thought we’d take a look at the collection to see what we had related to law enforcement and Thanksgiving.

Photo, stereoview, 1938. 2006.369.1. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

The photograph is a 1938 stereo photograph, made to be looked at with a viewer for a three-dimensional effect. The photo was taken at the 1938 Boston Thanksgiving Day parade on Beacon Street. The white building wing peeking out of the right side of the images is the Boston State House annex that dates from 1917. The men who are holding the tether lines are dressed either as convicts (in striped clothing) or as law enforcement officers (in keystone cops helmets).

While we don’t yet know what organization sponsored this parade, it appears to be in keeping with New York’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. We have been able to find one other photograph of what appears to be the same balloon in the New York Macy’s parade from the year before (1937) at the Corbis collection. The tether holders in that photograph are dressed as keystone cops.

If you have any information on this parade, we would love to hear from you in the comments below.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

A Police Matron from Davenport, Iowa

2010-09-24T13:09:00.031-04:00

This article is contributed by one of our summer interns, Elena DiGrado, who worked on this newest addition to our collection.

When I picture a police matron in the early 20th century, I imagine the corrupt Matron “Mama” Morton from the hit Broadway play, “Chicago.” Her character represents our modern stereotype of a woman in her profession. Matron “Mama” Morton receives bribes from the young murderesses of Cook County Jail in exchange for contraband (i.e., cigarettes and liquor) and legal assistance during their trials. In her solo performance, she expresses her motto explicitly, singing, “When you’re good to Mama, Mama’s good to you.” Although “Mama” Morton entertains audiences, she represents a false conception of early 20th century police matrons.

The National Law Enforcement Museum recently acquired a new collection that focuses on the life of Davenport, Iowa’s, Matron Sarah “Sadie” Hill. The Museum plans to use the collection to reconcile the public’s perceptions (or misconceptions) of police matrons’ roles in American society with who they actually were. The collection includes several newspaper articles detailing her positive role as the city matron and some of her personal items, such as her black shawl, bonnet, and hand mirror, along with nine photographs and a bundle of hair from an unknown person. Matron Hill was a member of a national organization called the Western Police Matron Association, and the collection also contains ribbons from annual conferences, including the one held during the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, Missouri.

Bonnet, hand mirror, photograph, newspaper articles, and ribbons, Hill Collection. 2010.29.4a, 6, 13, 1, 11. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C.

The position of the police matron began in the 1890s and quickly became the trend for major cities in America. Right before the turn of the 20th century, law enforcement in America found themselves in desperate need of assistance with social problems they were expected to handle, in addition to crime. As cities urbanized, more and more young women lived without the protection and support of families and in jeopardy of descending into the sway of prostitution in local brothels. Prior to police matrons, male officers handled arresting women and were confounded by the abandoned children, elderly, and homeless people on the streets who all needed the basic necessities of life, such as food, clean water, and shelter. These individuals did not break the law, and people argued that they did not belong in jail with law breakers because of their unfortunate circumstances. The “Police Matron” became the chosen solution to these problems. These women first dealt with female prisoners, but they soon extended out to serve as social worker, counselor, and welfare officer as needed.

According to Sharon E. Wood’s The Freedom of the Streets: Work, Citizenship, and Sexuality in a Gilded Age City, Sarah Hill was the second matron appointed by Davenport and was assigned to her position in 1893. She dedicated her life and service to the protection of those who could not help themselves from the perils of urban decay. This new collection of Matron Hill’s effects gives evidence of how one police matron exemplified the ideas behind NLEM’s mission statement. Helping abandoned women, old people, children, and the homeless, her acts created a positive relationship between law enforcement and the public. Also, through the duties she performed, she successfully contributed to a safer society and served to uphold the democratic ideals of the U.S. Constitution.

With this collection, researchers can further investigate the role of police matrons in American history and how their involvement established the role of women in the law enforcement field. Matron Hill’s story provides another view of what I once thought was the role of a matron, and I look forward to delving further into her life and her service to the citizens of Davenport, Iowa.

CSI: Washington, D.C.

2010-08-27T16:02:00.004-04:00

No, there’s not a new version of the hit T.V. show in the works, although I think our nation’s capital would make a great setting. The National Law Enforcement Museum is committed to exploring all aspects of law enforcement, and right now, one of the areas we’re focusing on is forensics.

I’ve written in the past about our “What’s in the Evidence?” program which is currently in beta testing. But there’s another new program in the works: an online, forensics-based activity that will allow students in grades six through eight to take a case, analyze the evidence, and then present the evidence in court, possibly leading to a conviction.

Students doing the online activity will use science reasoning skills as they work on the case. And in contrast to shows like “CSI,” “Cold Case,” or “NCIS,” they’ll have the opportunity to see how evidence is used throughout the whole law enforcement system. They’ll also get to see that not all evidence is as conclusive as the TV shows make it seem, hopefully preparing students to be more informed jurors when they get older.

We’ll be consulting closely with experts in the field as we continue to develop the program so that our activity is more authentic than many of the TV shows currently airing. But I’m curious—have you ever watched one of the forensics-themed shows and wondered whether some aspect or technique they’ve used is authentic? What aspect of forensic science fascinates you the most? If you could incorporate any type of forensic science into an activity like this, which types would you choose to feature?

Why Should School Resource Officers Know about Domestic Violence?

2010-07-16T11:42:00.001-04:00

As I prepare to attend and present at the National Association of School Resource Officers (NASRO) annual conference in August, I will be connecting domestic violence with what School Resource Officers (SROs) do in order to keep schools safe. Is there a relationship, and if so, what is it?

A School Resource Officer is a sworn local law enforcement officer, who is responsible for providing students a safe and comfortable environment at school. An SRO works as a link between law enforcement and the school, school administration, teachers, parents, and most important, students.

Between 3.3 million and 10 million children witness domestic violence annually (Lawrence, 2002, pg 5). SROs interact with children and youth on a daily basis, which creates a direct link to why SROs should be familiar with what domestic violence is and how it affects children, especially when they are at school. In addition, because witnessing violence at home can lead to children acting out or even becoming violent in school, SROs have a duty to keep schools safe and free from any violence.

Children living in households where domestic violence is present may hear or see violence and threats. They may also see the aftermath of violence: broken furniture, bruises on their mother, their father being taken away by the police (I am using a male-on-female example here because the vast majority of cases are male perpetrated.) Sometimes, to protect their mother, children place themselves in harm’s way. Witnessing this violence increases the risks of emotional and behavioral problems in a child.

When children witness domestic violence at home, the emotions and behavioral problems are likely to be brought to school. Some signs that children may be living in a domestic violence household are physical complaints (stomachache or headache), tiredness (because of lack of sleep from staying up because of the violence), sadness, low self-esteem, difficulty paying attention in class, outbursts of anger, and bullying and aggression. Because SROs interact with students every day, they need to know these signs so that they can help and support the student.

So, what are some of the things that an SRO (or any school personnel) can do to help? First, the student needs to know about the SRO’s limits of confidentiality, because an SRO is a mandated reporter (someone who has to report to family services if they suspect child abuse or neglect). Then, the most important thing someone can do is listen. Let the student tell his or her story, but at the same time, don’t pressure the student to talk. The SRO should assure the student that they believe her or him, and validate the student’s feelings. Afterward, the SRO should check with the student’s teachers and see how he or she is doing in class, and then collaborate with the school social worker or counselor on next steps to get the child help.

Domestic violence requires intervention from a network of people. School Resource Officers are an important part of that network, because they are at schools to keep the students and the schools safe. School may be the only place many child witnesses have to be free of violence.

And sometimes, a trusted adult who will listen to a child is the first step for the child to get help.

Museum Announces Acquisition of J. Edgar Hoover Estate

2010-07-08T17:18:00.006-04:00

We here at the National Law Enforcement Museum are thrilled to publicly announce the acquisition of an important addition to our growing collection: J.Edgar Hoover's estate, donated to us by the J. Edgar Hoover Foundation. Hoover served as director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 1924 to 1972, and over his long tenure had a great effect on law enforcement in the United States. The collection includes artifacts that tell about Hoover the man, such as family photographs, his china and crystal sets, political cartoons, awards, recordings of his speeches, and presentation items. The more than 2,000 objects also include the papers of Morris Childs, an FBI spy who worked for many years inside the U.S. Communist Party. We're so excited to be able to care for this important collection and make it available to researchers and the public when the Museum opens in late 2013.

Read the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund press release

Read about the announcement in the New York Times

Five Cool Artifacts in the Collections of the National Law Enforcement Museum

2010-07-06T14:12:00.011-04:00

We have so many interesting objects in our collections. Here are five I've selected, listed in no particular order.

Photograph, ca. 1960. 2008.40.26. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C. This image was probably used in a ca. 1960s FBI training session or lecture to illustrate the history of the use of fingerprinting in law enforcement.

1) “West Brothers” – Photograph, 1903. A case of mistaken identity at Leavenworth. The early years of the 20th century witnessed a transition from the Bertillon Measurement system, a process of identifying criminals based on measurement of anthropomorphic characteristics such as skull, arm, and leg measurements, as well as recording marks on the body, to the acceptance of fingerprints as unique identifiers of individuals.

The case of the “West Brothers” is particularly illustrative of the reliability of fingerprinting over Bertillon Measurements. In 1903, Will West was committed to the penitentiary at Leavenworth, Kansas, where he was photographed and measured using Bertillon methods. Will West’s measurements were found to be almost identical to a criminal at the same penitentiary named William West, who was committed for murder in 1901 and was serving a life sentence. Furthermore, their photographs showed the two men to bear a close physical resemblance to one another, although it was not clear that they were even related. In the ensuing confusion when the identities of the two men were being confirmed, their fingerprints conclusively identified them and demonstrated clearly that the adoption of a fingerprint identification system was more reliable than the older Bertillon method.

2) Robocop 2 suit, 1990 (image coming soon). Just because it’s Robocop…and cool. This sci-fi action film is a sequel to the 1987 movie Robocop, a cinematic vision of law enforcement set in the near future. The Robocop saga is based on the tale of a law enforcement officer, played by actor Peter Weller, who was killed then resurrected as a cyborg entity programmed to fight crime. According to a 2002 Dutch-language interview with director Paul Verhoeven, the Robocop character was based on comic book action hero Judge Dredd and was inspired by the futuristic film Blade Runner. The successful Robocop franchise includes two sequels, branded merchandise, an animated television series, and comic book adaptations.

Identi-Kit, Model II, Smith and Wesson, ca. 1976. 2009.4.18. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C. Composite images created from many different facial components were assembled by hand to produce an image of a criminal suspect.

A composite image created from randomly selected foils from the 1976 Identi-Kit Model II. Do you know who this is?

3) Identi-Kit Model II, Smith and Wesson, 1976. A reminder that things weren't always as easy as they are today. The Identi-Kit Model II is the second iteration of a composite facial feature reconstruction process used by police departments to help identify criminal suspects. First produced in 1959, the original Identi-Kit consisted of hand drawn facial feature components which were mounted on transparencies called “foils.” Individual foils were layered atop one another to create a face, which was then mechanically copied and circulated to aid in suspect identification. The Identi-Kit in the NLEM collection is the second version, which was developed in 1976 and contains photographic, rather than hand-drawn, facial features mounted on foils. In 1989, the first software version, Identi-Kit Model III, was introduced and its Internet-based use continues today by law enforcement agencies.

Lunch box, Adam-12, ca. 1973. 2007.43.163. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C.

4) Lunchbox, Adam-12, 1973. People of a certain age will remember not only the television show Adam-12, but also the status of carrying a lunch box with colorful depictions of these fictional law enforcement heroes to school. Jack Webb, of Dragnet fame, produced this popular television series, which ran from 1968 to 1975. The show was based on the experiences of Los Angeles Police Department officers and strove “for absolute authenticity as far as police technique and procedure is concerned.” Starring Kent McCord as Officer Jim Reed and Martin Milner as Officer Pete Malloy, the worn metal lunch box depicts exciting scenes from the show: apprehending dangerous criminals in dark alleys, the tension of speeding toward a call, and community-friendly interactions with children and puppies. The lunchbox was originally produced with a matching thermos, missing from the artifact in the NLEM collection.

Traffix Accident Reporting Kit, Forbes Stamp Company, unknown date. 2008.26.15. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C.

5) Forbes Traffix Handy Accident Reporting Kit, unknown date. This unique kit contains 18 wooden and rubber stamps with a variety of vehicle illustrations, including cars, trucks, bicycles, and various combinations of these vehicles, presumably to illustrate traffic accident situations for reporting purposes. This intriguing artifact is missing documentation and the ink pad, and may date from before 1940. The kit is, however, accompanied by a c. 1960 instruction booklet, published by the Traffic Institute of Northwestern University in Evanston, IL, about how to use traffic template kits, although it is not clear that the Forbes kit and the booklet are related. Research still needs to be completed on this artifact, and it will be fun to track down the history of this kit and its manufacturer, the Forbes Stamp Company. If you have any information about the Forbes Traffix Handy Accident Reporting Kit, or about the Forbes Stamp Company, please contact the Museum.

Testing a Museum Program: “What’s in the Evidence?”

2010-06-25T17:13:00.005-04:00

Because we don’t yet have a building, the Education Programs staff doesn’t get to work with the public very often. So I’m excited whenever I can get one of our programs in front of a group of living, breathing kids.

“What’s in the Evidence?” is an activity developed by our staff, including two of our past interns, to teach middle school students (ages 10-14) about forensic science and its connections to law enforcement. After testing with Memorial Fund staff and one group of students, the activity was just about ready for prime time.

An important component of any program developed by the National Law Enforcement Museum is evaluation, or looking at our programs to objectively examine whether they’re meeting the goals we created them to meet. Read Dean’s blog post to learn more about this process.

Recently, we’ve had three opportunities to test out “What’s in the Evidence” with some more students, each time working with a great group of kids who tried out the activity and helped us pilot the evaluation survey that will go with it. Every time we’ve all had a great time!

The middle schoolers solve a “vandalism” that occurred at the Visitors Center through forensic evidence collected at the scene of the “crime.” They analyze handwriting samples, run chromatography tests on ink from different pens, and examine shoe impressions (footprints) and fingerprints. Some groups have been more successful than others at fingering the culprit, but they’ve all learned about what forensic evidence can—and oftentimes cannot—tell us about crimes.

Sound like fun? This summer we’re offering the special opportunity to participate in this session free of charge. That’s right—you provide the kids, the room, and some adults to take part, and we provide the materials and an educational two-hour experience. If you’re in the D.C. area and know of a Girl or Boy Scout troop, science class, camp group, etc., who might like for us to come in and teach this activity, let me know [link to rfulcher@nleomf.org]. I’m also curious to know, if you could do this activity, what would you like to learn about in the area of forensic science?

Making Connections with the NLEM Collection

2010-06-18T12:08:00.000-04:00

Museums often collect individual objects because they are important in and of themselves. Sometimes, however, we are able to make connections among various items and are able to tell a broader story. That has happened with a number of items acquired by the National Law Enforcement Museum over the last four years.

In 2006, the Museum acquired six letters written in 1896 by the President of the New York City Board of Police Commissioners, Theodore Roosevelt.

We were interested in these letters because Roosevelt wrote, “If there is anything that I love more than foot ball [sic] it is civil service reform.” (Pictured at right: Letter, Oct. 30, 1896. 2006.282.1. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.) Most people know about Roosevelt because of his Rough Riders during the Spanish American War, and of course, because he was the 26th president of the United States (1901-1909). But these letters also talk about Roosevelt’s interest in reform while heading up one of the most important police departments in the country, as well as the professionalization of law enforcement in the late 19th century.

Also in 2006, we acquired an 1884 cartoon drawn by one of the most important political cartoonists in the 19th century, Thomas Nast. We acquired it because it depicted a law enforcement officer.

Political cartoon, Harper's Weekly, May 10, 1884. 2006.406.36. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

On receiving the print, we discovered that it was not really a policeman, but a cartoon using a policeman to illustrate Theodore Roosevelt working to improve the governance of New York City by attempting to rid it of its Democratic political machine known as Tammany Hall. Read more about Roosevelt’s reform efforts in NYC.

This cartoon, published in May 1884, shows Governor Grover Cleveland sitting in the window, as Roosevelt attempts to throw out the two political “machines” of the Democratic Party in New York, Tammany Hall and Irving Hall. We need to conduct more research to identify the men labeled as Tammany Hall and Irving Hall.

Roosevelt’s reform work was the beginning of a career in political reform efforts starting in the 1880s, continuing under his tenure on the Board of Police Commissioners in the 1890s, and completed as President of the United States.

What other materials have we acquired that relate to Roosevelt? Try accessing our online catalog and search for “Theodore Roosevelt” and “police” and see what you find!

Putting the Value in eVALUation: Part I--What is Evaluation?

2010-06-10T11:53:00.004-04:00

When you hear the word “evaluation,” what do you think of? If you are like most, beads of sweat appear on your forehead as you begin to recall the cranky driving instructor who put the kibosh on your earnest attempt to become a licensed driver with his red pen. Most of us are familiar with (and dread) this type of evaluation, which is defined as “the process of determining significance or worth, usually by careful appraisal and study.”

In the context of museums, however, evaluation takes on more of an emphasis of “analysis and comparison of actual progress versus prior plans, oriented toward improving plans for future implementation.” In this sense, museum evaluation is about enrichment—it is about setting, improving upon, and reaching measurable outcomes.

As Evaluation Specialist at the National Law Enforcement Museum (NLEM), my role in this vein is to help examine the outcomes of our educational programs against each program’s goals and objectives and to make certain these line up with the Museum’s overall mission. While at times challenging, evaluation is the means by which we incorporate accountability and long-term effectiveness into the Museum’s work.

Although the NLEM is slated to open in 2013, the Museum Programs Department is planning to begin a number of its public programs just after groundbreaking takes place on October 14, 2010. With the support of the non-profit Institute for Learning Innovation, we are currently in the process of testing our programs.

Over the next year and a half, the purpose of our testing is two-fold. First of all, over the next several months, our iterative testing (also known as front-end or formative evaluation) will provide feedback about early versions of our programs to inform decisions about how we can best modify and improve them. Secondly, we will use summative testing to evaluate the effectiveness of the final programs based on previously identified outcomes.

In part two of this post, I will outline in greater detail different types of evaluation, discuss our identified outcomes and how we arrived at them, and use our recent testing to help put it all into perspective.

Upcoming June 16 Volunteer Opportunity for Teens

2010-06-02T16:20:00.000-04:00

Hello. My name is Warren A. Jefferson, and I am a junior at Cesar Chavez Public Charter High School for Public Policy. I am also part of the Teen Advisory Council (TAC) at the NLEM.

The point of the Teen Council is to help younger citizens better understand the vital role of law enforcement in a democracy by having their viewpoints, interests, and perspectives heard and put into a film to be shown at the Museum’s groundbreaking ceremony in October.

As members of the council, students will learn real life work skills in the areas of leadership, strategic thinking, project planning and team work. The project will be introduced on Wednesday, June 16 at a Pizza Party. Those that are interested in helping on the TAC and the groundbreaking project will meet once every two weeks.

Although the video project is only a short term goal for TAC, we hope that over time, TAC will continue to work with the Education Programs team to give advice and guidance on the development of programs for teens across the country. The bigger goal is to help support the museum in its mission to build mutual respect between the public and the law enforcement profession. By doing so, we’ll be able to contribute to a safer society that serves to uphold the democratic ideals of the U.S. Constitution.

If you know any teens who would like to get involved, email Betsy Bowers, Director of Education. She’ll let me know you’re interested, and one of us will be back in touch with you.

Upcoming June 17 Adult Volunteer Opportunity

2010-06-02T16:11:00.000-04:00

Please join Museum staff on June 17 for an informational reception as we officially launch our Volunteer Program. Anyone interested in finding out about the progress of the Museum’s development and volunteer opportunities is welcome to join us. With groundbreaking activities taking place this fall, we expect to launch a few of our educational programs and increase the pace of the Museum’s development, thus providing many new opportunities for volunteers locally and nationally. If you are interested in volunteering or attending the reception, email Vanya Scott, Volunteer Program Manager, or call her at 202-737-7869.

Groundbreaking Date Announced: October 14, 2010

2010-04-16T12:29:00.003-04:00

We are so incredibly excited to announce the date for the Museum's groundbreaking ceremony: October 14, 2010. After planning and working toward this goal, it's thrilling to be one step closer to opening.

For all the details, check out this official press release. As the date gets closer, we'll have more information to share, including a schedule of events. Anyone is welcome to join us in person or online.

In the meantime, continue to support our efforts by reading the blog, sending us your comments and ideas, donating artifacts, and following us on Facebook. Your support makes our efforts worthwhile.

Monthly Educational Program Promotes Museum Relationships

2010-03-24T10:58:00.008-04:00

Even without a museum building, the NLEM Education Programs are already underway. We hope that those who have participated in our “Behind the Scenes Collection Tours,” the “Project Citizen Partnership Program,” “What’s in the Evidence,” or the “Federal Agency Brown Bag Lunch Group” would agree that the National Law Enforcement Museum has some interesting activities in the works. By getting our Education Programs off the ground at this stage, we can begin to get people excited about the Museum and build relationships that will be key to its success once the doors are open.

This month marks the one year anniversary of the Museum’s Federal Agency Brown Bag Lunch Group activities. Discussion topics have included information about the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, the role of the District of Columbia Metropolitan Police Department in safeguarding the streets of the federal government and other subjects. With a larger goal of building relationships between federal law enforcement agency historians, history buffs and the Museum staff, an interesting group of professionals finds themselves coming together on the fourth Thursday of every month to learn more about one another’s work.

The format of each monthly Brown Bag program varies. Experts in specific areas of law enforcement history have prepared formal presentations. Relevant news articles have been shared ahead of time and used to prompt less formal group discussion. Later this year, an expert in audio description will share information with staff and stakeholders about steps museum staff should take to ensure a positive experience for a broad audience that includes people who are vision impaired. What each program has in common is that they are fun and fairly informal get togethers. Although it’s a small group now, we look forward to growing the group over the next several months. As our Museum Volunteer program gets off the ground early this summer, we look forward to offering the Brown Bag Lunch activities as a volunteer benefit. If you have a topic to present or are interested in finding out more, please let us know.

Upcoming topics and dates include:
March 25 – The History of the United States Postal Inspection Service, presented by Tripp Brinkley, Postal Inspector Program Manager at the U.S. Postal Inspection Service

April 22 – Presentation on Los Angeles Police Department Chief William H. Parker by Alisa Kramer, Ph.D., from American University

May 27, June 24 – TBD

OPENING A DOOR TO TEXAS PRISON GANG MEMBERS

2010-03-15T16:39:00.001-04:00

Laura McKee, our NLEM Graphics Imaging Project Intern, is a student in the graduate museum studies program at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md. She is currently interning with the National Law Enforcement Museum to learn how to catalogue and write about artifacts.

To say that something or someone is “history” is usually a sign of disrespect. However, at the National Law Enforcement Museum, historical artifacts have a significance in American culture that can flow seamlessly into the present and even into the future.

Prison Gang Tattoos Booklet, ca. 1980s. 2008.70.11. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC. (all images)

Take, for example, the small, soft-cover handbook of prison gang tattoos (circa 1980s) published by the Crime Analysis Section of the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Criminal Intelligence Service. Despite its modest appearance and low production values by today’s standards, this little booklet provides a fascinating glimpse into the dark, often-obscure world of prisoner identity politics. It has a glossary of “gang slang” and descriptive summaries of violent prison gangs ranging from the American Nazi Party and the Mexican Mafia to the Mandingo Warriors. It’s also filled with illustration after illustration of tattoos, some with text and some without, but each evidencing a rich imagery and symbolism that can be linked directly to the probable criminal activities and ideologies of certain inmates.

Why is this handbook important? Its place in the past, in the history of law enforcement, is indisputable—Texas authorities used it to discharge their duty to protect and serve civilians, to identify gang members, and to map their potential behavior both in and out of prison. But what about this artifact’s relevance, almost three decades later, to current cultural trends and security concerns? Today, 24% of Americans aged 18-50 years have one or more tattoos. Among Americans aged 18 to 29, the rate goes up to 36%. Those statistics, taken by themselves, are innocuous; however, they become meaningful when they intersect with the fact that there are now over 2.4 million people incarcerated in the United States.

In this light, the prison gang tattoo emerges as a long-standing indicator of separateness from the American mainstream, a continuously reliable mark of social deviance. It would also be interesting to ascertain if the twentieth-century tattoos in the booklet are similar or identical to the tattoos worn by present-day prisoners. Do you or somebody you know have experience working with prison gang members? Or have an interest in this critical aspect of the exploding phenomenon of U.S. prison gang membership? Tell us what you think!

How We Create Programs: We Listen to You!

2010-02-24T15:12:00.002-05:00

Have you ever thought about how museums come up with their programming?

Think about a field trip you’ve been on, a tour, a lecture, a special event sponsored by some museum, zoo, historic house, arboretum, aquarium—an experience that you just loved and that really made an impression on you. Why did the museum or other institution decide to focus on that subject? Or why did it offer the program at that particular time of day? At the time, why did it seem like that experience was made just for you?

I can tell you from the inside, it wasn’t just a happy coincidence or mere whim on the part of the institution. Any museum worth its salt, and especially anyone who creates programming (read museum educator!), knows that in order to be successful, you have to listen to the needs of the community.

There are lots of ways to do this. The National Law Enforcement Museum uses vehicles like our Facebook page and this blog to get immediate feedback from our national community. We’re developing partnerships with local schools that will help us shape the school programs we’ll offer to students from all over the nation once we’re open. And we’ve assembled a knowledgeable, savvy, national group of advisors with expertise ranging from museum education to law enforcement to civics to socially responsible museum programming to offer guidance. Our Education Advisory Committee is one organized way we listen to all the different communities we want to reach.

So now I’m curious. Who do you think the National Law Enforcement Museum’s community should be? Who should we make extra efforts to reach out to as we develop programs we’ll offer now and in the future? In order to make a program, tour, activity, or whatever seem like it was created especially for you, what should we include, or what would it look like? Please leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Love and Law Enforcement

2010-02-12T16:47:00.012-05:00

For four years we have been developing the collection of the National Law Enforcement Museum. One would think that, given the nature of policing, the bulk of what will be in the Museum’s collection is of a serious nature: uniforms, equipment and other tools of the trade, photographs of officers doing their work, items related to bad guys, materials to help us live safer lives, and so on. Indeed, of the over 8,000 items in the collection, the majority of the objects in our collection do represent the serious side of policing. But it’s February, and it’s almost the end of winter. Valentine’s Day is the 14th, and almost everyone’s attention turns to Cupid.

We have acquired two valentines that relate to policing—and I’m happy to share those with you.

What is interesting to me—and I’ve certainly not made a study of valentines, is that they both pun on “please” and “police.”

The first is a mechanical valentine—the clown rotates back and forth, and asks the recipient to “Be my valentine! and ‘poleece’ stop juggling my heart around.” We believe it’s from the middle of the last century (ca. 1940s-50s). It’s signed on the back “To Betty / From / Mum and Dad / with love.”

Police valentine, ca. 1940-1950. 2006.268.1. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

The second, also believed to be from ca. 1940s-50s, states “Come ahead and ‘police’ be my valentine.”

Police valentine, ca. 1940-1950. R0814. Received by the NLEM, Washington, DC.

If you have any information on these valentines or have thoughts to share about the connection between law enforcement and valentines, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Lending a Helping Hand as a Peer Reviewer

2010-02-12T13:35:00.000-05:00

We're delighted to announce that Laurie Baty, post card collector, photography expert, and intrepid Senior Director of Museum Programs here at the National Law Enforcement Museum, was recently selected to be a peer reviewer for the American Association of Museums' Museum Assessment Program.

It's an exciting opportunity, not only for Laurie, but also for our developing museum. This honor recognizes Laurie's three decades of experience in the museum field, as well as her knowledge of best practices and current standards. As a peer reviewer, Laurie will assist museums going through a self assessment process that's designed to help them maintain and improve their operations. Through her work, she'll also learn more about what other museums are doing, strengthening our museum, too.

This volunteer position takes lots of time and dedication, but we know Laurie is up to the challenge. Congrats, Laurie!

Read the NLEOMF press release

New Domestic Violence Program Aims to Work with Schools

2010-02-04T16:55:00.001-05:00

According to a study on family violence, over 15 million children live in households where partner violence has occurred (McDonald, 2006). Witnessing domestic violence can affect a child physically, emotionally, and mentally, putting them at higher risk to be depressed, aggressive, and anxious (Edelson, 2006). These children also have trouble expressing themselves in a healthy way. In addition, boys who witness violence have an increased risk of becoming abusers in their future relationships and girls have a higher chance of being victims of dating and domestic violence (Pelcovitz, 2009). School is one place where a child can feel safe and shielded from the violence at home; teachers and school staff are often the only stable relationship the child has with an adult (Kearney, 1999).

With that in mind, and with assistance from the Verizon Foundation, National Law Enforcement Museum program staff are creating a program to provide information and training to Washington-area teachers, school resource officers, and other school staff on what domestic violence is, and how witnessing domestic violence affects children. The training will also give school staff the tools they need to provide students with an outlet to get support and stay safe.

The National Law Enforcement Museum is working on this program because domestic violence is a long-term critical issue for law enforcement. More officers by far are assaulted or injured during domestic disturbance calls than any other circumstance (Floyd, 2007). In addition, the very nature of law enforcement is to keep people safe. An important part of this program will be building respect, trust and confidence between school staff (including the law enforcement officers in the school) and their students. With this program, our goal is to make sure schools are not only safe, but also places where children can get the support they need. This initiative will support the Museum’s mission to encourage open communication and foster interaction between law enforcement and the community.

Contraband Weapons—Shivs and Shanks at the NLEM

2010-01-20T11:27:00.000-05:00

In 2007, Louisiana State University (LSU) donated a collection of contraband weapons to the National Law Enforcement Museum. According to Barry Cowan, LSU Archivist, the weapons originally formed a display used by LSU’s Law Enforcement Training Program, which ran from 1953 through 2006. He says, “The LETP offered training for corrections officers, and I was told the display was designed to show students the types of weapons to look for when searching prisoners and their cells.”

The term “shiv” is slang for any sharp, pointed object that is used as a knife, and can be created out of anything from a shard of glass to a hardened, sharpened toothbrush handle. Similarly, “shank” refers to a makeshift, knife-like weapon, and the two terms are often used interchangeably. The weapons seen here were all created from materials gleaned opportunistically; they show careful preparation and have been painstakingly sharpened, probably against a concrete floor or wall.

Contraband prison weapons, ca. 1960-1980. 2007.70. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C.

Mundane, easily available prison items are prime sources for contraband weapons. Dining utensils, machine- and wood-shop parts, and even meat bones left over from prisoner meals have been fashioned into lethal shivs and shanks. Toothpaste has been known to be used as a hardening agent when combined with paper, and thread pulled from prison uniforms or bedding is useful for “fishing” underneath doors or passing notes and other objects from cell to cell. The type of materials used, such as thread, cloth scraps, foil, etc., make contraband easy to hide, and corrections officers are carefully trained to control access to potentially dangerous materials and effectively search prisoner cells and common areas for hidden contraband and caches.

One commonly made contraband weapon was a slashing razor, assembled by melting a razor blade into the plastic handle of a toothbrush. The correctional system has introduced the use of safety items like the “no-shank toothbrush” (seen in the lower left of the safety items image, above the flexible pencil) and specially-designed disposable razors such as those produced by Bob Barker Company, a corrections supply firm who donated these items to us.

Correctional safety hygiene products, ca. 2008. Prop Collection of the NLEM. Shown is clear toothpaste, flexible handled toothbrush, “no-shank toothbrush,” disposable razor, unsharpened safety orange flexible pencil.

These items demonstrate the wide variety of objects in our collection. They document both the dangers that corrections officers face—there are close to 600 corrections officers on the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial—and their response to those dangers. We will incorporate these objects into exhibits in the Museum and preserve them for future study.

Prohibition Inspector's Donated Badge Tells a Story

2010-01-13T15:02:00.005-05:00

Chris Cosgriff is the founder of the Officer Down Memorial Page, Inc., and PoliceLink.com, two of the most popular law enforcement websites on the Internet. In 2009, with the approval of the officer’s family, Chris donated Inspector William Payne’s prohibition enforcement badge to the National Law Enforcement Museum. We asked Chris to write about this donation.

Prohibition was one of this country’s darkest periods for law enforcement. Local, state, and federal law enforcement officers were being gunned down in city streets, basements of blind tigers, and in the hills and forests while searching for illegal stills. One of the most aggressive of these dry raiders was Inspector William Payne, who served with the Virginia Department of Prohibition Enforcement—the precursor to today’s Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.

Badge, ca. 1919. Gift of Chris Cosgriff. 2009.7.1. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, D.C.

Inspector Payne was gunned down in Alexandria County (later renamed Arlington County), Virginia, on February 21, 1919. At the time, he held his department’s record for the highest number of arrests. Demonstrating his dedication to the job, he had already been shot and wounded during another raid the previous year.

His story and legacy, along with his actual badge, were passed down through his family for almost 90 years. The badge, the only original Virginia Prohibition Inspector badge known to exist, ended up with his granddaughter, who donated it to the Officer Down Memorial Page several years ago for safekeeping until the National Law Enforcement Museum was ready to accept donations.

The badge is now where it belongs and will forever be a symbol of the supreme sacrifice that five Virginia Prohibition Inspectors—and hundreds of other brave local, state, and federal law enforcement officers—made during Prohibition. It will be one of several objects that will rotate on exhibition in the Museum's “Gangsters and G-men Time Capsule.”

Domestic Violence Prevention Programs at the NLEM: Part II

2009-12-15T10:49:00.001-05:00

As we’ve seen in Part One of this blog post, our nation’s law enforcement officers are profoundly affected by the number in their ranks who are killed, assaulted, or experienced trauma each year as a result of having to respond to incidents of domestic violence (DV). And since part of the mission of the National Law Enforcement Museum is to tell the story of American law enforcement and contribute to a safer society, the rationale for the Museum to be involved in developing DV prevention programs is clear.

In recognition of this, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund—the organization building the Museum—received a generous grant from the Verizon Foundation in May 2009. As the Museum’s Community Education Specialist, I am responsible for helping to develop and evaluate the grant’s two DV prevention projects, both of which are designated as “Socially Responsible Education Programs.” The Domestic Violence Prevention Advisory Committee—a diverse group of more than a dozen experts from the fields of DV prevention, law enforcement, and public and museum education—has been brought together to ensure that these two programs are innovative and effective.

K-12 students and their families will visit the Museum for kIDsafe, an interactive, monthly family day event during which they will learn about general safety topics by participating in a variety of activities. The DV component of the event will focus on increasing the visitors’ use of DV prevention strategies. For example, young children could create a list of people to turn to for safety and teenagers might learn to recognize, early on, the signs of an unhealthy relationship. On the other hand, the “DV Awareness and Prevention Program” will be a certification program that will enable teachers, school counselors, and administrators within the Washington metropolitan region to identify and prevent domestic violence among the student population. And by collaborating with their school resource officers—those law enforcement personnel who are school-based—these professionals will be able to create a protocol to help their colleagues vigorously address the issue when it arises.

By developing these programs, the Museum hopes to decrease incidents of domestic violence and to ultimately increase respect, trust and confidence between law enforcement and domestic violence victims, their families and the general public. In mid-October, we were happy to welcome onto our staff Smita Varia as our DV Prevention Specialist, and we view her addition as another step forward on the way to achieving these objectives.

December Artifact Detective: Cartoon Cop

2009-12-09T10:54:00.000-05:00

Flintstones police officer, original artwork, hand painted cell, c 1960. 2007.118.1. Gift of Dick Wenig. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

What we know:
This is a hand-painted cell of a Flintstones cartoon police officer character.
William Hanna & Joe Barbera produced the cartoon show.
The Flintstones ran for 166 episodes. It premiered on ABC on September 30, 1960, and ran for six seasons. The final episode aired on April 1, 1966.

What we want to know:
What was this character’s name?
What years did he appear on The Flintstones?
Do you have, or do you know someone who has, objects related to law enforcement characters?
Who are some of the other cartoon and comic book officers that you remember from your childhood?

If you have any information about this object or own an object similar to this, leave me a comment!

Bringing the Museum Into Your Home: The NLEM’s Online Catalog

2009-12-03T11:45:00.000-05:00

The National Law Enforcement Museum is one of only a few museums that has decided to catalog ALL of its collections—from books, manuscripts, and photographs to oral histories and three-dimensional artifacts—in one database, thus allowing access to all kinds of information about similar materials held by the Museum. In addition, because of rapid changes in technology, the Museum’s catalog will provide access to images, electronic files, video, and other kinds of materials usually only seen in-house. By joining forces with other international online catalogs, the NLEM truly will be a national museum by reaching a broad audience of individuals interested in law enforcement history who might not otherwise know that the NLEM exists.

The Museum’s catalog is now live. We have over 700 books and over 145 oral histories from former Special Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation now available, and we have an ambitious plan to have complete information—from the history of an object, a photograph of it, and other information that we may have—about the majority of our collection (books, oral histories, photographs, uniforms, badges, etc.) online by the end of 2011.

What kinds of “stuff” does a Museum have? Could we help you identify something that you’ve had in the family for years? The Museum’s catalog might be able to help you answer those questions. It is keyword searchable, so you can type in the words you think might be related to an item. If you want to see what we have related to wanted posters, type those words in and you will see a list of books on wanted posters, as well as historical wanted posters from John Dillinger to Patty Hearst. If you are interested in the Barbara Mackle kidnapping, type in those words—you'll get “hits” on oral histories and a book about the kidnapping. We also have prepared some “canned” searches specifically for the FBI oral histories. We intend to add similar searches for other important topics as well, as we add more of our artifact information to the catalog.

Take a look—the direct link is http://research.nlem.org/.

We would love to hear what you think.

Many Perspectives, Different Paths, One Common Goal

2009-11-23T10:05:00.004-05:00

Talk about rewarding. To work with a group of committed professionals on a project, not just any project but a really important project, is incredibly meaningful. To arrive at work in the morning and know that I’m going to learn something from one of our bright young professionals keeps daily routines interesting. I find myself reflecting at the end of the day on some bright idea that one of my Generation X or Y colleagues has had about an innovative approach to exhibiting and interpreting the interactive law enforcement vehicle that will become part of the Museum or how to engage our Education Advisory Committee in an interactive judgment simulator session. I realize how much I appreciate their contributions.

At the other end of the experience spectrum (not too far at the other end, mind you!) there’s the wisdom and knowledge that our department senior director brings to the team. She provides the kind of insight and thoughtfulness that we need to be able to build a “world class” institution. She has ideas about caring for artifacts, accessing the collection and building relationships that may not make our lives easier, but, in the end, we know it’s the right way to approach the creation of an institution that's "Built to Last."

What’s especially fun, though, is when we disagree. That’s when the sparks fly and passions ignite. You immediately see that every one of us is doing this work because we care. I’m happy to say that we’re all still idealistic enough to think that this project might make a difference. Imagine achieving the mission we set out to achieve. What a privilege to be able to say someday, “I helped to make that happen.”

Try Our Newest Family Activity: Build a Badge

2009-11-19T10:47:00.001-05:00

Our latest NLEM Insider newsletter features NLEM’s Build a Badge family activity designed for elementary-age students. We hope you’ll take a minute to share it with your children. Encourage them to create their own law enforcement badge with symbols that reflect who they are. Mom and Dad (aunts and uncles, grandparents—you can share, too!), once they’ve finished, refer to the “Build a Badge” activity guide’s Conversation Starters on page 4 to talk more about the topic. Then please take a minute to post a comment below related to what you learned or talked about together!

The Link Between the NLEM & Domestic Violence Prevention: Part I

2009-11-18T17:26:00.006-05:00

Whenever I tell someone that the National Law Enforcement Museum is currently developing domestic violence prevention programs, their initial reaction is one of enthusiasm. Frequently, however, a look of wonder soon overshadows their face: “That sounds great,” they reply, “but why domestic violence? Why is it important for the National Law Enforcement Museum to focus on domestic violence prevention?”

Each year, an estimated 1.3 million women will be physically assaulted by an intimate partner according to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence. This fact alone demonstrates the magnitude of the public safety problem that domestic violence (DV) presents for law enforcement. And every day, officers play a pivotal role in trying to manage it. As noted in a Department of Justice-funded report (p. 12), officers are often the first contact for violence-prone families, provide a “free” service, in the sense that the costs are not immediately apparent, and intervene as visible authority figures. The same report quoted the finding of Buzawa & Buzawa that in such cases, the police are “likely to be the only public agency in a position to provide rapid assistance on a 24-hour basis.” What many people do not realize, however, is that DV takes a heavy toll on the nation’s law enforcement community as well.

DV calls are among the most dangerous calls that law enforcement officers respond to. The situations can be extremely volatile since the individuals involved are often emotionally charged, and weapons may be involved. Since 1855, 663 officers have lost their lives while responding to domestic disturbance calls in the United States, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund. Far more officers are assaulted during domestic disturbance calls than during any other circumstance. In 2007, 32 percent of the 59,201 assaults on police officers occurred during domestic disturbance calls, according to the FBI. The next highest category, “attempting other arrests,” resulted in only 15 percent of total assaults against officers. And these statistics say nothing of the vicarious trauma that may be experienced by the responding officers—those negative changes that can happen to humanitarian workers over time as they witness other people’s suffering and need.

In this light, it is easy to understand why DV has been and will remain a critical issue for American law enforcement. And since part of the NLEM’s mission is to tell their story and contribute to a safer society, there is a clear rationale for the Museum to be involved in developing DV prevention programs. Now, the obvious question arises: what DV prevention programs are being developed by the Museum? More to come on that in Part II.

November Artifact Detective: Nothing improves your driving like a ticket

2009-11-12T12:10:00.002-05:00

Pin. Collection of the NLEM, 2007.73.48.

This is a first for the Artifact Detective, as we know virtually nothing about this object. So if it looks familiar or if a department near you or your own department used a slogan like this, let us know.

We are interested in learning more about historic “drive safely” campaigns; if you know of any, please leave a comment!

My Changing Perceptions of Law Enforcement

2009-11-04T13:10:00.003-05:00

One of the important parts of the National Law Enforcement Museum’s mission is changing public perceptions of law enforcement. Big task, right? Well, I’m a good example of an early Museum success story. When I started working here over two years ago, I didn’t have a bad perception of law enforcement, and I generally liked the idea that they are here, but I definitely didn’t think about the job officers do and the risks they take.

After I started working here, my perceptions began to change. I began learning about the profession through exhibit designs that reinforce the great things law enforcement officers have done and still do to keep us safe. As a member of the Memorial Fund staff, I attended a wreath laying ceremony for fallen officers at the Memorial. The speakers, both law enforcement and survivors, touched me. Then during Police Week, I got to talk to many law enforcement officers and their loved ones. This gave law enforcement a more human face and really made me appreciate how the job affects not just the officers but also their families.

I was surprised by how quickly my perceptions of law enforcement changed. I went from passing a cop and praying that they wouldn’t pull me over to wanting to walk up to officers on street corners and talk to them about who they are and why they became an officer. I hope that the educational programs and exhibits we’re creating for the Museum will be able to alter the public’s perceptions for the better, like working here has changed mine. Even if we don’t manage to change our visitors’ feelings towards law enforcement, I hope that we will be able to open up positive dialog between law enforcement and the public they protect.

For me, learning about and being involved in law enforcement events has changed my perception of law enforcement. I’m interested to see if anyone else has had a similar experience. If so, please share it!

Memory and Tribute: the Relevance of the NLEM’s Memorial Collection

2009-10-28T14:26:00.002-04:00

In the past several weeks, I have spent part of my time focusing on NLEM’s Memorial Collection. Since 1992, visitors to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial have demonstrated their emotional connection to and regard for law enforcement’s fallen by leaving tribute objects. It is those objects—some commonplace, some unique, but all holding meaning for those who left them—that comprise the Museum’s Memorial Collection. Wishing to gain a deeper understanding of this eclectic and evocative collection’s role in our Museum, I have explored some of the ideas that inform American memorial institutions.

The July/August 2007 issue of Museum News published an interview with Elie Wiesel, Auschwitz survivor, Nobel Peace Prize winner, and founding chair of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. Wiesel reflected on the nature of memory and memorials, speaking powerfully of the need to maintain the threads connecting us to those lost and to the events surrounding that loss. He said,

I believe—and I still do, in spite of everything—that memory is a shield. If we remember what people can do to each other, then we can help those who tomorrow may be threatened by the same enemy to do something. . . . I believe that he or she who listens to a survivor becomes a witness.

This quote resonates with me, because it speaks to the relevance and importance of such institutions of the NLEM and the NLEOMF. For me, the objects in the Memorial Collection are physical reminders that help me understand the importance of the sacrifices they memorialize. The objects left as tribute serve to express the memory of past sacrifice and can serve to remind the larger community of witnesses of the vital role that law enforcement has in civil society.

Stories from an American Postcard

2009-10-22T09:52:00.003-04:00

As a child I collected post cards. My parents traveled a lot and sent me pictures from where they visited. I saved them all. As I got older, I began to buy postcards as remembrances of my trips. Post cards continued to interest me as an adult, and in my current position, they help document the work of law enforcement. But I had forgotten the amazing stories a post card can hold—especially one without a picture!

In the NLEM collection is a run-of-the-mill postcard mailed by the Chief of Police in Sacramento to the Chief of Police in San Francisco in August 1880. The card, originally one of many such cards sent to Chiefs of Police (and most likely Sheriffs), described at length the items taken during a robbery. But with a little more research, the post card brought to life two important California citizens: the man who sent the card—Matthew Karcher—and the man who received it—Patrick Crowley.

Geo. Bates and Co. robbery postcard, 1880. 2006.79.1. Collection of the NLEM, Washington, DC.

Matthew Karcher was an American success story. Born in Baden, Germany, in 1832, he emigrated to the United States and eventually made his way to Sacramento. That same year, 1851, he opened a bakery which he ran for 14 years until it was destroyed by flood and fire. Having a family and no work, he was offered a position on the Sacramento police force and accepted it. Apparently he did well, running for and being elected Chief of Police for almost 10 years. He later served as a deputy sheriff.

Patrick Crowley, the San Francisco Chief to whom Karcher sent the card, is an even larger figure in western law enforcement history. In a 1929 article on her father, Kate Hays Crowley stated, “the story of my father’s life as chief of police of San Francisco is the story of the organization of the department and its development into an efficient unit of protection of the life and property of a great city.” Crowley was elected Chief in 1866 and served until 1897; his tenure as Chief saw many changes in the city. His daughter wrote, “He was chief of less than a hundred men in a community where interested citizens believed it their duty to get out and take an active, and often violent part in righting the wrongs or wronging the rights of their time.”

Little did the Museum staff know when we acquired the post card that it would shed light on two important settlers, as well as important California peace officers. Karcher, the immigrant who realized the American dream , and Crowley, an individual who experience the dramatic growth of an American city—captured on a small postcard.

Object Lesson: Tractors as Life

2009-10-12T17:21:00.006-04:00

How is museum learning different from learning in other settings? There are many answers to that question, but one important answer is that museum learning focuses on objects, not just ideas. It’s a unique approach, and it happens more often in daily life than you might think.

Here’s a case in point. A couple of months ago, I saw an antique tractor pull at the Montgomery County (MD) Fair. As I watched the tractors chug across the arena, I wondered whether any of them resembled the tractor my Great-aunt Leslie accidentally backed into the side of a barn when she was learning how to drive more than 60 years ago. She and my Grandpa (her brother, who repaired the damage) still laugh over the incident.

Back home, I called Grandpa to ask what kind of tractor his family owned on the Ewing farm. He told me it was a 1943 Farmall Model H, and then launched into a conversation about tractor manufacturers. My Grandma, who doesn’t like to talk about her childhood on the farm, volunteered that the early John Deere tractors were called “put-puts,” because of the sound the two-cylinder engines made.

Later, my parents and I talked about tractors. Dad remembered working with Grandma’s father, driving the tractor when he was 12 or 13 years old. I learned more about the serious accident that injured Great-grandpa just a few years later and about how a farm family without insurance or workers’ compensation survived.

A few weeks later, Grandpa attended an antique tractor show and snapped a photo of a tractor just like the one he’d used growing up. “I drove it thousands of hours!” he related in the caption.

And I learned all of this because of a tractor.

You may have had a similar conversation over a box of items saved from high school or with a child about the toys they loved as a baby. One object can spark conversations about many topics, and you talk about them because the object has meaning for you. As a museum educator, I’m committed to creating ways to allow visitors to talk about the Museum’s objects, not because they’re in the collection, but because they mean something to our visitors.

October Artifact Detective: Wild Bill Hickok Items

2009-10-02T14:17:00.003-04:00

Collection of the NLEM, 2006.493.12c and a

What we know:
The badge pictures Wild Bill Hickok (Guy Madison) and Jingles (Andy Devine)
Both items relate to the television and radio show, The Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok, which ran from 1951-1958.

What we want to know:
Was this sold as a cereal item?
Who made this?
What year is it from?
Are there any others like this out there?

Did you have one of these, or an item like it? What are your memories?

We are also looking for information and items related to portrayals of law enforcement in movies, television and radio. So, if you have an object or have any information, leave me a comment!

Perspectives from the Donor of the William Benson Collection

2009-09-18T14:09:00.003-04:00

This post was written by a friend of the Museum, Officer Eric Stolzman, (Retired #490), Yale Department of Police Services. Officer Stolzman served in New Haven, Conn. and donated his collection to the Museum in 2006.

Collecting has always been a passion of mine, instilled in me by my father when I was only nine or 10 years old. After he passed when I was 15, I felt the full influence of my father having belonged to the “Greatest Generation,” a generation defined by beliefs in honor, duty, and patriotism. Stories about my father and other contemporary family members abounded. I had one uncle in particular who served in the submarine service during World War II. Later, he worked for the CIA and shared his stories about traveling through Europe during the Cold War. I also vividly recall the individuals from national and international police agencies that were often at his home. My uncle was a collector of police memorabilia, and I would eventually strive to follow in his professional and collecting endeavors.

Photograph, Benson and his two daughters, Collection of the NLEM 2006.488.139

One of the most important groups of items I have ever collected reflects my desire to honor the memory of past officers, as well as explore the social mores of the past and how the lives and experiences of officers from several generations ago are still relevant to today’s officer. I discovered an officer named William Benson who started his career in 1888 with the Brooklyn Police Department in New York, which eventually merged with other boroughs to become the New York Police Department (NYPD).

Through contact with his family, I was able to obtain his Brooklyn uniformed photograph, appointment certificate, valor medals from two separate occasions, numerous NYPD police items , and a number of personal items, including his death certificate and a letter written about him by one of his daughters. With further investigation, I learned things about this man that even his relatives knew nothing about. You can imagine my pride as I shared this additional information with his family generations later. Benson retired in 1912 and died in 1935, but the memory of his service lives on because of the Museum’s vision to create a venue for displaying the history of men like him.

When I learned about plans to erect a museum representing the history of law enforcement, I contacted the National Law Enforcement Museum. Being informed that some 300,000 to 400,000 visitors per year are expected to visit the museum, I am honored by the inclusion of my collection and its contribution to our profession. The lives of officers, like Officer William Benson, can live on and teach others what I believe are the principles of our nation’s finest.

September Artifact Detective: "We Chirp for the Cleveland Press" Button

2009-09-11T09:57:00.008-04:00

By Jeni Ashton, Associate Curator

The National Law Enforcement Museum has collected more than 8,000 artifacts to-date, so we can’t always devote as much time to researching individual objects as we would like. Please help us uncover some of the stories behind our objects. Leave a comment with anything you may know about the featured item. We welcome all information, and we’d appreciate sources and citations when possible. Thanks!

Button, c 1896,Collection of the NLEM 2008.34.1
What we know:
Produced circa 1896
“We Chirp for the Cleveland Press”
Made by The Whitehead & Hoag Company, Newark, NJ
Patented April 14 & July 21, 1896
Cleveland Press was an afternoon newspaper published in Cleveland, OH, from 1878-1982
We checked in with the Cleveland Press Collection at the Cleveland State University. They felt sure that this had something to do with the Cleveland Press but could not find a reference to any promotion like this button. The Special Collections Librarian there suggested that “maybe it was for some sort of early community watch? Or for kids as part of a news reporting feature from the juvenile crowd? The button has SOMETHING to do with reporting news to the Cleveland Press.”
According to the Cleveland Press Collection’s Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant by Charles Godfrey Leland (Ballantyne Press, 1889), the word “chirp” means “to inform or snitch.”
What we want to know:
Why were these buttons produced?
Who wore them?
What is the cause that the officer is chirping for?
Do any other pins like these exist?
We are also looking for information about the use of law enforcement images in the American media or law enforcement involvement with American newspapers. Please leave a comment if you have anything to share.

An Educator’s First Visit to the NLEM’s Collections Facility

2009-08-31T16:04:00.004-04:00

By Dean MacLeod, Community Education Specialist

Have you ever been invited into the inner sanctum of a special place where you once might have suspected you’d have no business going? In early June, I made my first visit to the NLEM collections facility, just 30 minutes from our offices in downtown DC. There, I saw numerous artifacts that made me proud to be helping to build the NLEM: all manner of handcuffs, prisoner-made shivs and shanks (weapons) once seized as contraband, decades-old mug shots, Al Capone’s bullet-proof vest, and the box that holds Peter Weller’s Robocop 2 suit!

Okay, okay, I know you’re thinking, “It was just the box!”—but as an educator who doesn’t often see this side of museum practice, it was still pretty neat. It’s great to know that the Museum will be a place where we can tell the stories behind the material culture of our law enforcement officers, and in turn, demonstrate the important role they play to uphold the Constitution and shape our society.

Thoughts on the Memorial Collection

2009-08-12T14:24:00.005-04:00

By Vanya Scott, Registrar/Collections Manager

The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is a powerful public commemoration of the fallen from those who make up the Thin Blue Line that protects American civil society. The message of the Memorial, acknowledging the honor and sacrifice of fallen law enforcement officers, resonates most powerfully in the individual stories that objects, photographs, and written messages reflect.

Dear Uncle Mark, I miss you. I fondly remember that fall when we picked the giant pumpkins in your garden. Todd can ride a 2-wheeler now. I love you. Love, Emily (1996)

Police Week 2009 was the first National Police Week I was privileged to attend. I found the profusion of objects of all types, including stuffed animals, patches, t-shirts, photographs, pins, plaques, flowers, candles, coins, figurines—the variety seemed endless—to be quite evocative and powerfully emotional. The National Law Enforcement Museum preserves objects from the Memorial wall that are left during National Police Week remembrance activities each year, carefully storing them in a secure and climate-controlled facility for future study. Police Week memorial collection objects have been saved since the 1990s, and after my experience at Police Week 2009, objects collected in earlier years suddenly hold new meaning for me. Each object bears witness to the mourner’s loss and has its own unique message, a message of private mourning placed in public context.

Jeff – It angers me that you died possibly thinking that no one was coming to help you. It angers me that you bled to death…the system failed you. It angers me that I have learned so much about you, through your wife, after your death…We never formally met, but I am your friend. We will do, and I will speak for all L.E.O.’s, anything and everything to see to it that the “Jeffrey Tackett Bill” will pass. You’re missed by many, many people. (1996)

As I moved through the Memorial during my weekly duties, I had a chance to meet many Police Week visitors. Several had attended the Memorial event year after year, and used this time to renew bonds with friends and colleagues. For others, Police Week 2009 was the first they had attended, and they were, without fail, greatly moved by the fellowship and goodwill they found here. What was interesting to me as a museum professional was how they all used this time at the Memorial to revisit and renew their bonds with the friend or loved one they had lost. Though not all chose to express this by leaving tribute objects or written messages, many, if not most, folks did. Sometimes the meaning of an object was a bit obscure, known mainly to the family or friends who placed it there. Other objects had messages that were quite clear in their commemorative intent. All, though, were unmistakable in their need to maintain the thread of affection with the one they lost.

Jimmy – You are my son, my friend. I will love and miss you forever. Mom (2007)

The objects collected from 2009 Police Week will join the objects collected from previous years’ commemorations. The Museum approaches the collection of tribute objects from the Memorial in a thoughtful, respectful way. Objects are preserved to make sure they remain intact and accessible for future generations to study and contemplate. The Memorial exists to honor the fallen heroes of law enforcement, and an important part of what the Museum does is to preserve the legacy that exists in tangible form.

July Artifact Detective: .32 Colt Revolver from the Late 1800s

2009-07-22T10:37:00.035-04:00

By Jeni Ashton, Associate Curator

Help us learn more about our collection!

With the sheer volume of artifacts that have been acquired by the National Law Enforcement Museum – more than 7,500 to date – we can’t always devote as much time to researching individual objects as we would like. So we are calling on you to help us uncover some of the stories behind our objects. On a regular basis, I will post pictures and any information we have on specific objects in our collection. We want you to tell us anything you may know about the item. All information is welcome; sources and citations are requested when possible. Please email Jeni Ashton at jeni@nleomf.org. Thank you.

1896 .32 Colt New Police Double Action Revolver Collection of the NLEM 2007.125.1

Inscribed “"New York Police" on butt, "Colt's Pt. F. A. Mfg. Co. Hartford, Ct. US.A. Pat. Aug. 5.84.Nov.6.1888", "1438"”

What we know:

Weapon was produced between 1896-1907
Approximately 49,500 were produced
NYPD purchased and issued around 4,500
President of the Commissioners of Police, Theodore Roosevelt, authorized the purchase and issue
Weapons were factory stamped ‘New York Police’ on backstrap
Two stamped badge numbers 2318 and 4777

What we want to know:

Who do the badge numbers belong to?

We have seen that the first "officially carried" weapon of the NYPD was the Colt .36 5-shot percussion revolver. But I’ve also found references to Roosevelt having problems with poor marksmanship and back firing weapons after this weapon was adopted. After conducting tests, the NYPD decided to issue the Colt New Police as the standard revolver for the NYPD. Does anyone have any insight on this?

We are also looking for information on the standardization of law enforcement equipment in the late 1800s. So, if you have an early-issue police weapon or know of information when police departments began issuing standardized weapons, let us know.

Public Enemies: An Academic Look Behind Hollywood’s Next Blockbuster

2009-07-13T09:57:00.027-04:00

Collection of the NLEM 2006.220.3

By Jeni Ashton, Associate Curator, National Law Enforcement Museum

With the recent release of "Public Enemies," I began to think about the legend of John Dillinger (played by Johnny Depp) and wondered how the movies would treat his story. Often 'historical' mainstream movies gloss over some of the little details that can make a difference in how the public reads the main character (in this case Dillinger). Now it is true, as the movie depicts, that in real life the public rooted for and avidly followed Dillinger in the newspapers and on the radio, despite his murders. He and his gang were responsible for killing 12 law enforcement officers, and generally wreaking havoc.

When I was looking through our collections catalog this morning, I came across this newspaper article from April 23, 1934, titled, “Dillinger Again Escapes Police under Gun Fire, 4 Killed, 3 Shot” (above). The article describes the chase, shootout, and escape of Dillinger and many of his cohorts, and notes the death of FBI Special Agent W. Carter Baum in Eagle River, WI.

I was happy to find that this scene and Special Agent Baum’s death are shown in the "Public Enemies" movie. In this specific scene, this seems to be a small step forward in making a somewhat accurate historical blockbuster movie, even if there are moments in the film that are slightly exaggerated.

Our intern Anna found that Special Agent Baum left behind a wife and two daughters. Anna wrote, “Can you imagine becoming a single mother in the middle of the Great Depression?” This question made me pause for a second. The movie did give a nod to law enforcement; but, it might have been nice if the movie showed the effects of Dillinger’s rampaging across the Midwest. It could have given the law enforcement officials a little more depth, and hopefully gotten the viewers to think beyond the fast action bad guy stuff.

Welcome to our blog!

2009-06-05T12:21:00.005-04:00

We, the lovely staff of the National Law Enforcement Museum, are kicking off our first Museum blog ever, and we're pretty excited about it!

Stay tuned for interesting articles about artifacts we've acquired, research we're conducting for future exhibits, and educational programs we're putting together for school children.

Visit us again soon!