Moline Police Department History Page

In 1872, the responsibility for policing Moline rested solely with the town constable.  Prior to this juncture, men employed by the city maintained order and regulated criminals without documentation.  It was a rather unstructured approach to their affairs of the office. 

On May 1, 1872, August Herkert was appointed night policeman.  His duties were from 8:00 PM until 5:00 AM for the sum of $50 per month. 

On May 9, 1872, the Board of Trustees recognized the need of day police.  James G. Wells was employed for the salary of $45 per month.  An ordinance empowering the mayor to appoint the city marshal and a night policeman was presented eight days after the community was incorporated into a city. 

On September 6, 1872, the ordinance was passed.  The city of Moline had its first ordained police department.  Chief August Herkert and his deputy, James G. Wells, were proud to be Moline’s first police officers.  The chief’s salary was $600 a year and Wells drew $360 annually.  The two officers patrolled the city on dark nights.

In 1877, accommodations for a police headquarters were established at Sixteenth Street and Fourth Avenue.  There, the police would be quartered in the Central Fire Station.  The Chief’s Office was just across the hall from the Police Magistrate’s Court.  This arrangement was convenient, allowing the Magistrate to hold court on the very day that offenders were arrested. 

One of the early on-going problems for the police was handling the many fights which occurred at the ever-present saloons, which were frequented by many immigrants (whom, it is reported, liked their beer). 

In 1880, the Moline Police Department had grown to seven officers, including a Marshall and one merchants’ policeman.  A patrol wagon was kept for the department’s use and served its purpose well. 

In May of 1883, Edward Kittilsen, one of the most outstanding of Moline’s police chiefs, was appointed. Kittilsen had joined the police department in September of 1880 and was named Deputy City Marshall.  He was elected Marshall in the spring of 1883 and served in this capacity until 1886.  Kittilsen then served as Moline’s Police Chief until 1906, excusing an eleven month leave of absence to serve with his regiment in the Spanish American War.  Kittilsen served as Rock Island County Sheriff for four years beginning in 1906.  Kittilsen returned to the Moline Police Department where he was appointed a special instructor.  He became night captain in 1918 and served in this capacity until October 15, 1931.  He retired on October 16, 1931 with a total of 40 years and 1 month on the force. Edward Kittilsen died March 22, 1939. 

History tells of one of Kittilsen’s most unusual experiences while he was serving as Moline Police Chief.  One particularly dark night, he and Sergeant Dorman were walking down the railroad tracks when they came upon two tramps.  The chief asked the men where they were going.  The two tramps drew revolvers, shot and wounded both police officers.  The tramps escaped, later being captured in another state.  They said they were running from the police after committing an armed robbery when Kittilsen and Dorman came upon them.  The two thought the officers knew about the robbery, so they shot them. 

In December, 1877, Kittilsen was responsible for Moline Police Department’s first “bicycle patrol.”  Marshall Kittilsen purchased a bicycle to aid police to cover more territory in a short time. 

In June, 1880, the first horse drawn wagon and combination ambulance was put into service. 

By 1900, the police force consisted of nine men who worked in two shifts of twelve hours each.  The officers worked seven days a week with no vacation time at all.  The policeman’s starting salary was $660 per year.  The bustling river city had a population of sixteen thousand. 

In 1901, the Moline Police Department had eleven men who walked beats and rode horses.  Until after World War II, officers often took public transportation to non-emergency investigations.

On May 1, 1903, Peter A. Ross was appointed as a patrolman at the age of 51.  He served 20 years and 4 months, retiring at age 71 on September 15, 1923.

On June 15, 1908, the first woman appointed Police Matron was Carrie S. O’Conner.  She resigned May 31, 1912 and was appointed to the state job of Superintendent of the Girls Training School in Geneva, Illinois.

On April 6, 1909, the City of Moline installed its first police call box system.

In June, 1910, the department received its first horseless carriage, a Pope-Fordham, manufactured in St. Louis.  This squad car was completely black and the men immediately dubbed it the “Black Mariah.”  A virtual storm of criticism surrounded the introduction of the “Black Mariah” paddy wagon.  Some authorities felt that the good old days were gone because the patrolman was no longer walking a beat.  The vehicle was used to answer distress calls from officers who walked the beats and who used the new call box system. 

The first motorized police vehicle in the city was also delegated as an ambulance when needed.  Police officers were responsible to render first aid until 1953.  Ambulance duties were taken over the by the Fire Department.  The Fire Department still continues to maintain the City Ambulance Service.

By 1911, the City of Moline was governed under the commission for of government.  Policemen were now allowed one man off per shift (Sundays only) and 15 days annual vacation.

In August, 1912, Rose Salisbury was hired as the second Moline Police Matron.  In 1919, Rose Salisbury became a policewoman.  Officer Salisbury served as truant officer and juvenile probation officer for Rock Island County Court until April 1934.  Rose died in 1943 and was buried in Riverside Cemetery Mausoleum.  Rose’s career was exemplary, in that she was noted for her kindness to youngsters.

In 1918, Ben DeJaeger was appointed Chief of Police.  He served as Chief until August, 1945.  Chief DeJaeger joined the police force in 1897.  He was promoted to desk sergeant three years later.  It was a promotion in rank but not in pay until April 1, 1906.  On this day, a city ordinance was amended to provide a $5 a month increase for desk sergeant.

Ben DeJaeger served a total of 48 years on the Moline Police Department and was one of the oldest police chiefs in the United States at the time of his retirement.

By 1919, Moline had returned to an alderman form of government.  The police officers were allowed one day off every eight days.  Civil service for police was adopted by referendum and a Board of Police Commissioners was appointed. 

On May 1, 1920, a police pension fund went into effect.

In 1920, The City of Moline was swept with a crime wave.  More major crimes were committed in 1920 than in the entire decade either before or after that year.  Police records reveal a continuous series of robberies, burglaries, hi-jacking and murders during that 12-month period.  Many of these crimes were attributed to the fact that during World War I, 837 convicts were paroled to the Quad Cities to relieve the manpower shortage in the local war plants and at the Rock Island Arsenal.  After the 1918 Armistice, many of the parolees stayed in this community.

On August 3, 1920, six bandits in a large open car held up the Commercial Savings Bank for $15,000 in cash and an undetermined amount of negotiable securities.  They escaped after a gun battle with tow police officers, during which one spectator was wounded by the bandits.  A small boy watched the exciting gun battle.  Years later, the boy, Raymond Kinkead, was to become Chief of Police of the City of Moline.

One of Moline’s most hectic police problems occurred on August 19, 1927.  More than 150,000 people gathered to get a glimpse of the visiting Charles Lindbergh after this American hero was the first to fly the Atlantic Ocean.

During the 1930’s, the Traffic Section became an integral part of the Moline Police Department.  Times had changed and traffic problems began in earnest.  The first Traffic Sergeant was Carl Lindburgh.  Officers Earl “Smitty” Smith and Fred Nelson were assigned to motorcycles.  After World War II, the department changed over to three-wheeled Harley Davidson motorcycles.  Duties included parking and school crossing enforcement.  Soon after, the Traffic Section was staffed by one sergeant and five patrolmen.

In 1937, the “Black Mariah” paddy wagon is retired from service.

In 1943, Mrs. Geneva Dunderberg was named policewoman on the Moline Police Department by the Moline Board of Fire and Police Commissioners. 

August, 1945, Harry Fromme was appointed Chief of Police.  The department consisted of 28 members, including a chief, assistant chief, three desk sergeants, three detective sergeants, a traffic sergeant, a policewoman and 18 patrolmen.  Chief Fromme was the first Moline police officer to attend the FBI Training School from January 7 to April 3, 1939.  Fromme resigned in 1952.

By 1948, the Moline Police Department consisted of three squad cars, four motorcycles, and an ambulance.

In 1953, H.S. Mauritz Nelson was appointed Chief of Police.  Chief Nelson served in this capacity until April, 1963.  The department had grown to 43 men and had six vehicles. 

Work schedules in 1953 consisted of seven straight work days and the eighth day was a deserved “day off.”  When the rotation of tours of duty caused the day off to be Saturday, Sunday was considered a “bonus day.” 

In 1954, days off were changed to working six days with the seventh day off, and an extra day following the Saturday off.

Later in 1958, the work schedule consisted of six days on and two off.  When Saturday came, two extra days were given.

January 4, 1954, the Moline Police Department began using a “Radar Speed Analyzer” as a traffic enforcement tool.  This was the first use of radar timing equipment by the police department. 

Training in the fifties was virtually non-existent.  The starting officer was given his gun, cap, badge, and a club.  He was congratulated on becoming a police officer and told to report to duty at 11:00 PM in full uniform. 

In 1963, in-service training consisted of two one-hour seminars conducted by the State Police or the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 
Training was later expanded and classes were held at Moline Community College which later became known as Black Hawk College. Officers attended two-hour classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays dubbed as “Rookie School.”  This evolved into a full course of four classes that took two years to complete.  The curriculum focused on the basic functions of the police department. 

Today’s officers are more often than not college graduates and all are required to attend a ten-week course at the State Police Academy in Springfield, Illinois.   

In April of 1963, Raymond Kinkead was appointed as Chief of Police.  The Moline Police Department underwent numerous and necessary revisions during his tenure.  The Parmentier Survey was conducted and established reporting areas and a new beat structure for each eight-hour shift.  The entire police department was placed under three divisions.  Lieutenants were Division Commanders and sergeants became Platoon Leaders.  The Detective Bureau was reorganized along with the Traffic Section.  Both were supervised by sergeants. 

Until 1964, the walking beat was the main system of patrolling the city from the time the Moline Police Department originated. 

July 1, 1964, the Parmentier Survey Recommendations were implemented.  Walking beats were eliminated as the primary means of patrolling the city.  Beats patrolled by squad cars were initiated.  Midnight Shift deployed three squads while Day and Afternoon Shifts primarily utilized a five-beat system.  One of the five beat cars was a two-man squad.

In 1965, AFSCME President Perry “Pep” Gellerstedt petitioned the council to include ranks of three captains in the Moline Police Department.  The council concurred and the rank structure was revised.  The position of Assistant Chief was eliminated.  Three lieutenants were promoted to captain and six sergeants were promoted to lieutenant.  Three patrolmen were also promoted to sergeant.

On January 4, 1967, Officer Joe Dempsey was selected as “Policeman of the Year” by his fellow officers using a secret ballot.  The program was sponsored by the Optimist International Club.  Joe’s hearty laugh was as distinctive as his towering figure, which was a familiar sight for nine years when he had the downtown beat.  Dempsey’s father-in-law, Fred Anderson, was also a Moline Police Officer.  Anderson retired from the force in 1957 after nearly 28 years of service.

By 1968, the department went from forty seven officers to sixty two.  This was due mainly to a referendum requesting a .15 mill police tax being passed by a majority vote of the citizens. The tax was established and fifteen men were added.

On March 19, 1970, The Policeman – Pals Program was initiated by the Moline Police Department at Grant Grade School.  The program consisted of all officers working the day shift appearing at Moline grade schools where they were introduced to the schoolchildren.  The program provided officers frequent appearances at the school playgrounds.  The program established a good relationship between the school children and police officers.  The Policeman – Pals Program was the idea of Moline Police Officer Dan Cordell, who at the time had a son attending Grant School.

On May 28, 1971, a vehicle called the “Squad-Rol” police paddy wagon was put into service.  The vehicle cost $6,100.  Chief Nial Hogeboom said the Squad-Rol would be used primarily on weekends to patrol in the downtown area and to transfer prisoners to jail. 

On September 1, 1972, the Moline Police Department moved to its new home at the Moline Emergency Center, 1630-8 Avenue.  The department had shared space with others at City Hall since the early 1900’s.  Cost of the new Emergency Center was $1.6 million.  Past and present City, County, and State officials attended the official dedication of the Moline Emergency Center on Friday, September 15, 1972.

In 1982, Moline Area Crime Stoppers began.  The program has expanded and changed its name to Quad Cities Crime Stoppers.  The program services both Iowa and Illinois residents residing in Scott and Rock Island Counties.  The Moline Police Department still supplies the program with a coordinator, secretarial staff, and office space.

1982 was also a year where a second program began to solicit citizen involvement.  The Moline Neighborhood Watch Program was started by Officer James Williams.  The program was designed so that the citizens of Moline could become actively involved in curbing crime in their own neighborhood.

In July, 1987, the Moline Police Department established a tactical response team.  Moline Police Department Crisis Containment Unit (CCU) has both a tactical unit and a hostage negotiator unit.  Today, the CCU has expanded to include tactical dispatchers and tactical emergency medical staff.

In the fall of 1991, the Moline Police Department began having a police liaison officer at Moline High School.  The first plain-clothes officer was Detective Matt Sottos.  The program is a proactive approach to help prevent crime and protect the school’s faculty and 2,400 students.

In the spring of 1993, the Moline Police Department established a bicycle patrol.  As of today, over half of the department’s officers have successfully completed an intense two-week training program.  Moline Officers have continued to train other police departments in bicycle patrol tactics.

Today, the Moline Police Department has an authorized strength of 82 Sworn, 28 Full-Time Civilian, and 29 Seasonal Civilian employees.  The Moline Police Department is dedicated to Community Oriented Policing, addressing areas that are prone to crime, and working with the citizens and neighborhoods to keep this city a safe place to live and work.  Our goal continues to be to provide the highest quality of service and professionalism to all the citizens of Moline.