In 1892, with a 500 plus population living in the Northeast section of Oak Creek Township, the residents petitioned the State for village status, the village was to be called South Milwaukee.  Thus South Milwaukee came to be.  In early 1897, the State legislature passed a bill requiring all villages with a population of 1,500 to become fourth class cities.  The Village of South Milwaukee became the City of South Milwaukee.

South Milwaukee's modern Police Department had very humble beginnings.  When the village was incorporated in 1892, a village marshal and a constable were the only law enforcement officers.  The first village marshal was John Cullen.  A.J. DeFoy was constable.

Cullen and DeFoy were responsible for upholding the founding fathers "to punish and suppress drunkenness (sic), disorderly conduct, etc."

As a village, law enforcement was an elected position in the form of a village marshal.  As a city it was the elected position of city constable.  In 1910, the city created the first police department (non-elected positions) consisting of a chief and three patrolmen.  The constable position was never abolished and to this day remains an elected position that has diminished in scope and authority to that of a title holder.

It seems that trustees believed construction gangs needed overseeing and restraint, particularly on paydays when things got a little out of hand.  Drinking and disorderly conduct offenses were not the only business of early law enforcement agents.  The men were kept busy checking to see which dogs were licensed, who was obstructing traffic on streets and sidewalks and who was driving horses "across sidewalks and breaking and disfiguring them."

A bridge on North Chicago Avenue was reported to enforcement officers as being in weak condition.  Marshal Joseph Panek and Constable Geroge Breitbach were faced with instructing street cars to slow their speed to no more than six miles per hour.

In September 1887, the first common council of the newly designated City of South Milwaukee agreed to hire police on a temporary basis.

Officials said that if the men were hired for extra-special duties or if they were appointed temporarily to handle emergencies, payment would be one cent per hour and only for the time worked.

In February 1898, the police chief's salary was set at $50 per month, not much more than the janitor who earned $40 each month.

Constables changed positions with almost every election during South Milwaukee's formative years.  In the village's second voting, Cullen was elected marshal and George Blake became the new constable.

The April 1894 election saw A.D. Bethel in the marshal's role with Cullen serving as constable.  But the following year, Melvin Thompson was elected constable and Joseph Panek became marshal.

The first Police Station was tucked away in the garage that faced 12th Avenue and was behind a pharmacy at 1131 Milwaukee Avenue.  Here the department stayed until 1929 when a combined City Hall, Police Station and Fire Station was built at 1005 10th Avenue.  The police station consisted of two offices, five jail cells and a cell block.  In 1957, the Water Department vacated their quarters in the city hall annex at 921 Monroe.  This section adjoined the existing police station, so the police department expanded into the empty annex.

In 1981 The Parkway Elementary School building located at 2424 15th Avenue was renovated to accommodate all city offices that had been accommodated at 2005 10th Avenue and 921 Monroe Avenue location.

The Department has grown considerably since it was established in 1910.  It now consists of 33 sworn officers, 6 public safety officers, clerical staff and an auxiliary force.

ACCREDITATION

The accreditation process requires the department to have numerous policies in place and several standards met.  When changes in the standards are made by the WILEAG the existing policies need to be reviewed and revised to reflect any necessary changes.   This requires a continuous review of all department functions and operations.

Accreditation offers the South Milwaukee Police Department several benefits: providing "norms" against which agency performance can be monitored and measured over time; increased cooperation and coordination with other law enforcement agencies; increased effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of law enforcement services; and demonstrating to the community the South Milwaukee Police Department possess the professionalism it wants and deserves.  The South Milwaukee Police Department is committed to continuing this leadership through the accreditation process.

Police Vehicles Photos click here >