In the Year of 1874;
San Francisco’s first mounted policemen patrol in Golden Gate Park and the vicinity as part of the Golden Gate Park Police. The mounted officers, specifically, are referred to as, “Range Keepers.” The first Range Keeper is Thomas Sloane, a former cavalryman. A silver star worn over the heart is the only symbolic identifier worn by the Range Keepers. This regiment of officers in San Francisco is the first U.S. mounted municipal police unit west of the Mississippi.
In the Year of 1878;
Chief of Police John Kirkpatrick requests of The Board of Supervisors fifty additional police officers; new police stations in the Mission District and the Polk Gulch, and mounted police to patrol the vast expanse of the Western Addition and outlying districts.
In the Year of 1883;
Chief of Police Patrick Crowley poses atop his magnificent horse with many of his assembled SFPD troops, for a department photograph by renowned San Francisco photographer Isaac Taber.
In the Year of 1888;
The Park Police are now outfitted in dapper gray uniforms. They are similar to the grey uniform previously worn by regular members of the SFPD (who now wear dark blue uniforms) but, the uniform sleeves are adorned with elaborate black piping. The uniforms are nearly identical to those worn by mounted officers in New York City’s Central Park. Their “bobby-style” helmet is adorned with a silver wreath (the first hat badge worn by any police officers in San Francisco) bearing the initials, “G.G.P.P.” Additionally, each officer is outfitted with a magnificent rosewood truncheon with a belt and a silver buckle. Although jurisdiction for the city police ends at Divisadero Street, San Francisco’s Chief of Police Patrick Crowley details regular city policemen, horses, mules and wagons to Golden Gate Park when necessary, particularly on weekends when burgeoning crowds flourish and overwhelm the Park Police force.
In the Year of 1896;
Hailed as the proudest day in San Francisco Police history, nearly half a thousand uniformed police march in the first Annual San Francisco Police Inspection, Review & Parade. From the ferries along Market Street, to Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco’s Finest, now trained experts in precision drill, march to the delight and enjoyment of over twenty-five thousand cheering spectators, many of whom throw flowers at the feet of the passing policemen. Favorite amongst the adoring crowds, is the impressive platoon of SFPD Mounted Police under the command of Corporal Shanahan. Splendidly leading his department as Mounted Brigadier General of the Review, is Chief of Police Patrick Crowley. Drill Master, Sergeant Robert A. Marshall, follows atop his impressive steed, to the beat of the department drum corps. Mounted, in command of the First Battalion of marching men is Captain George Wittman. Mounted and leading the Second Battalion, is Captain John Spillane. (Previous Reviews did not include precision drill, music, inspection by dignitaries or the pomp and circumstance surrounding this Review, which was officially proclaimed the “first.”)
In the Year of 1899;
Chief of Police Isaiah W. Lees and Captain George Wittman, both on horseback, lead a glorious muster of SFPD officers down Van Ness Avenue for the fourth annual San Francisco Police Inspection, Review & Parade. (Different designations and titles were ascribed to the annual processions depending Mounted officers ride at the rear of the assemblage, which many exuberant spectators proclaim, “…as saving the best for last.” The image is captured by illustrious photographer George Blum. (Blum entered the SFPD as a sworn officer in 1902 and later serves as Chief Photographer.)
In the Year of 1900;
The San Francisco City Charter is revised, effective, January 1, 1900. Two keys provisions in that Charter deal specifically with the SFPD. The most important revision is that henceforth, all sworn policemen will be civil service employees. By changing the authority over Golden Gate Park from the California State Legislature to the mayor and Board of Supervisors of San Francisco, all of the San Francisco Park Police, including mounted officers are absorbed into the regular ranks of the SFPD.
In the Year of 1901;
Chief William P. Sullivan Jr., selects a special squad of detectives and patrolmen to guard visiting President of the United States William McKinley and his entourage. Four highly regarded and skilled mounted officers are selected to escort President McKinley everywhere he goes, from the time of his arrival until his departure two weeks later. The mounted officers are given majestic black horses to ride and an entire new set of accouterments for the assignment. The special squad of mounted officers consists of: Sergeant James Kelly, Officer J. Berrie, Officer Christopher Arrellanes and Officer Manuel de la Guerra.
In the Year of 1909;
In a feat of extraordinary bravery and courage, Mounted Officer George Merchant atop his able mount, stops a runaway team of eight horses on Market Street, saving countless lives. Merchant’s daring rescue is spotlighted as one of the most impressive amongst the countless that valiant policemen perform routinely on foot and horseback.
In the Year of 1910;
Sixty-two strategically placed mounted officers are patrolling the Golden Gate Park, Ocean Beach and the outlying sections of the Bay View, Mission, Richmond, and Sunset Districts of San Francisco. They include two sergeants, three corporals and fifty-seven patrolmen.
In the Year of 1911;
Chief David A. White assembles the first organized traffic squad (See Motorcycles, 1909). He assigns Lt. Duncan Matheson to be in charge of this new unit. Twenty-one men comprise the new traffic squad which patrols downtown business districts. A uniformed officer is assigned to every intersection along the heavily traveled Market Street corridor. Other officers are assigned to fixed-posts on Kearny Street, Grant Avenue and Sutter Street. In addition to the men on foot, five mounted officers are assigned to the unit to enforce traffic ordinances, protect pedestrians and facilitate the flow of traffic. The mounted officers are Corporal Wilbert Pengelly, Officer Grover Coats, Officer John F. Quinlan, Officer Benjamin J. Smith and Officer Fred H. Cook.
In the Year of 1915;
To the thrill and amazement of spectators, several SFPD mounted officers and their equine partners, led by Sergeant George Merchant, participate in horse shows and competitions at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition (World’s Fair), easily winning ribbons in every event that they enter.
In the Year of 1918;
After years of faithful service, through the cooperation of the San Francisco SPCA, retiring city horses (police and fire) are for the first time, afforded the opportunity to enjoy a well-deserved retirement to a pastoral ranch. (This practice remains in place to this day, for retiring police horses.)
In the Year of 1930;
Inspector George Merchant conducts weekly lasso practice at Ocean Beach to train mounted officers to rescue drowning people. Civilian expert swimmers are recruited to volunteer as rescue subjects.
In the Year of 1935;
As part of Police Field Day, mounted officers of the Traffic Bureau and the Golden Gate Park Station compete in a mounted tug-of-war at the old stadium in Golden Gate Park. Sponsored by the San Francisco Junior Chamber of Commerce, the event raises money for charities across the city.
In the Year of 1937;
SFPD horses are now stabled in five locations city-wide: Bay View Barn (1676 Newcomb Avenue); Ingleside Barn (Balboa Park); Potrero Stable (in service, June 9, at 2300 3rd Street); Southern Stable (360 4th Street) and the new Golden Gate Park Stable (open, but still under construction which replaces the Stanyan Stable which closed on June 9).
In the Year of 1939;
Amongst the hundreds of Depression-era W.P.A. (Works Progress Administration) projects undertaken in San Francisco, Project #1699 is the building of a new main SFPD stables in Golden Gate Park. Construction began on October 10, 1935 and is completed on August 31, 1939.
In the Year of 1946;
Horses in the mounted unit are now mobile. A new, specialized, custom- built van is now able to transport up to seven horses from the stables to anywhere in the city swiftly (see: Trucks). Due to this efficiency in transporting horses across the city, the Potrero Police barn is eliminated. Fifty horses are now kept at the Golden Gate Park Stables. The horses utilized for downtown traffic are still maintained at the Southern Stable.
In the Year of 1964;
After much wrangling, Officer Ernie Provost becomes the first African-American mounted officer to serve in the SFPD. (Provost will serve with quiet dignity and grace. In the 1970’s he will serve as the mounted unit’s horse trainer. He will spend thirteen of his twenty-seven years in the department as part of the Mounted Unit.)
In the Year of 1980;
The Mounted Unit is presented with its own unit flag by the Native Sons of the Golden West. The flag is first displayed during the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade, one of many San Francisco parades and festivals in which the unit participates.
In the Year of 1981;
The final barrier of inclusion is broken when Officer Laura Carroll becomes the first female officer to join the exclusive ranks of SFPD Mounted Officers. Carroll had been an accomplished equestrian prior to becoming a police officer.
In the Year of 1988;
Mayor Art Agnos recommends closing the mounted unit as a cost savings measure. Fiercely proud of their traditions, the citizens of San Francisco handily reject this proposal. Measure “V” to save the SFPD Mounted Unit from extinction wins overwhelmingly with 86 percent of the vote.
In the Year of 2012;
To protect mounted officers from potential head injuries, Chief Greg Suhr and the Police Commission institute a uniform policy change for mounted officers. Instead of the standard, ‘Duty, Class B, service hat’, ‘Special, Class C, baseball cap’ or Formal, ‘Class AA, Stetson campaign hat’, SFPD Mounted Officers are now required to wear helmets when they ride their mounts on patrol duty. For ceremonial and other special occasions, a large cowboy hat is worn. The officers of the mounted unit present Chief Suhr with a commemorative cowboy hat for his very own.
In the Year of 2014;
San Francisco has the second-oldest continuously serving police mounted unit in the United States. (Due to budget constraints, several municipalities were forced to discontinue their mounted units in the last decade, including Boston and Cleveland.) Famously known for hundreds of amazing ocean rescues, participation in numerous charitable and civic events, and as ambassadors of good-will, SFPD’s Mounted Unit continues to serve the citizens and visitors of San Francisco with pride and distinction, just as they have for the past 140 years.
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