2/4/2012 4:24:15 AM

1820-1899

1820-1850 – Constables, beat walkers, and night watchmen were city law enforcers.
April 29, 1866, City Ordinances required that police officers be elected and determined the number of hours to be worked, rate of pay, and how many would be hired. It established the City Marshall would head the police force.
1878 – The City of Clarksville burns.
1889, the Department consisted of 5 officers with an average monthly salary of $78.00.
1895, J.E. Robinson became Chief and served until 1939.
1897, Streetcar operator Thomas Small saves the life of future officer’s (Jay Runyon) relative and becomes an officer himself, serving for 36 years.
Officers’ duties included patrolling the train station, the bridges, furnace property, and catching cows. They also had the supervision of chain gangs.

1900-1939

In 1904, policmen were paid $600 a year ($50 a month)

1907 - Over 200 people show up at the Courthouse and Police Department to vote on the abolition of saloons. IT PASSED.
Clarksville had its first traffic accident on October 19, 1910 on Madison Street.
The speed limit in 1910 was 5 miles per hour.
In 1911, the Police Department had a Chief, Lieutenant, 4 policemen and a workhouse keeper.
The police budget for 1924 was $10,400, of which $10,368.91 was spent
1925 – Raymond Pursell becomes first traffic officer (rides a Indian Little Scout twin-cylinder motorcycle) and is paid by both the City and the County
In 1930, the police roster consisted of nine officers.

Fingerprint equipment was purchased for the first time.
Parking meters became a reality in 1942.
Patrolman K.L. Nipple was killed in a business fire in the line of duty in 1945.
Hours were changed from 12-hour days to 8-hour days in 1945.
A 2-way radio system was installed in 1947.
In 1948, new traffic lights were installed, to be controlled by the Police Department.
John Lee becomes the first Clarksville Police Officer to attend the FBI school.

In 1953, an alcometer (forerunner of the breathalyzer) was approved for purchase.
Women were approved as school patrol officers.
Officers were allowed to wear short-sleeved uniform shirts during the summer.
In 1956, a patrolman’s salary was $264 a month after the first three months.
In 1957, the first black officers were hired.
The firing range was built at the end of Franklin Street.

The first Police Department Rules & Regulation book was issued
The Juvenile Division was created in 1970
The City Jail closed.
In 1972, the Department had 3 motorcycles and 15 cars.
Officer Kenneth Browning was killed in the line of duty and died on Valentine’s Day, 1974.
Bullet-proof vests were first purchased in 1976.
The move was made from the Public Square Building to the Criminal Justice Complex.
The Police Department Vice Squad was approved in 1977.
The Special Weapons and Tactics Team was formed in 1979.
The Crime Prevention Bureau was put into effect in 1979.
By 1979, the Department had 94 officers and 33 cars.
The first Police Service Dog Team was used in 1977
King, canine unit member, was shot and killed in 1978 in the line of duty

City votes to supply school patrol officers with uniforms
The Intelligence Section is created in 1985
Internal Affairs came into being.
The North and South Precincts become a reality.
Guns were purchased for officers.
A computer system was purchased to allow the Police Department to tie into the County system.
Officer Doug Glenn killed in a traffic mishap on November 5, 1983.
Written Policy Manual was adopted for use by the Department.
Became City Softball Champions in 1982
The first uniformed accredited woman patrol officer was sworn in in 1983.
The Reserve Division was established in 1984-1994.
St. Bethlehem was annexed and 9 officers added.
Traffic Control was transferred to the Police Department in 1987
The first black female patrol officers joined the Department in 1987
1988 opened up with Clarksville conducting its first Tennessee Law Enforcement Training Academy School
The first class in DARE begins in 1989.

Special Operations Unit formed in 1991
Repeat Offenders Program formed in 1992
Combat Auto Theft program formed
4 laser speed detectors purchased in 1993
The Department becomes nationally accredited in 1994
Citizens Police Academy formed in 1994
Community Policing becomes reality in 1995
Street Crimes Unit formed in 1996
The Department heads up an Unsolved Homicides Task Force in 1996
Field Training Officer Program established
Lavoyed Hudgins becomes Chief until his resignation in 2001.
Comstat comes into being.
January 22, 1999, a tornado hits Clarksville and the main Police Department building is damaged, thus beginning a 2-year transitory period for the Department.