The Romance of Norwalk

Immediately after the consolidation of Norwalk and South Norwalk into one city, a new police department was formed. This was in October, 1913, and the following officers were named: Chief of Police, William R. Penning¬ ton; Detective Sergeant, Thomas Leatherland; Desk Ser¬ geants, Thomas Hunt and Harry Gibson. In addition there were 18 patrolmen, making a total of 22 men in all on the force. The year 1929 finds that number just doubled, with 44 on the force. The position of the constable in the very early days of the community’s history, 1650, was a very important one. To quote an old record: “He was the arm of the law and the embodiment of His Majesty.” The constable was re¬ quired to read such laws as were then in force, at every session of the General Assembly, to lead in the jury when required, and to appear before the court on all occasions, with his long pole, surmounted with the British emblems of royalty. When the community consisted of the borough of Norwalk and the borough of South Norwalk, each end of the town boasted its own police force, generally one lone officer. When South Norwalk became a city in 1870, its resi¬ dents thought it right and meet that the section should have a regular city police department. August 29, 1870, the committee on by-laws and ordinances reported and it was decided that “the police force of this city shall consist of two beside the Chief.” John Tuttle became chief. Sep¬ tember 26, three rooms were leased for the police depart¬ ment in the Dibble block on North Main st., at the rate of $12.50 a month. A little later in the records appears a statement of the expenses of the early station house which CON SO LID A TION 39i were as follows: coal, $21.25; wood, $3.25; cleaning sta¬ tion house, $2.25; police hats, $7.50; whitewash brush, $1.25 ; oil, $2 20; matches, $.54; brooms, $.60; wicks and burners, $.30; and lamp chimneys, $.20. The report ap¬ pears to cover several months of time. James C. Crowe was chief of police in 1875 and on July 26 of that year he issued an annual report which showed that 57 arrests had been made during the year, 33 of which were accredited to himself. Norwalk became a city in 1893 and in January, 1894, it announced a new police department. Thomas Bradley was named chief; Wallace Dann, who is now first district com¬ missioner, captain; R. N. Morehouse, first patrolman; W. S. Bartram and John H. Kinney, second and third patrol¬ men. The chief was to receive $2.50 a day as was the captain, while the patrolmen would receive $2 a day. In June, 1927, the Board of Public Safety was created within the city of Norwalk to have charge of the local fire and police departments. The first members named were Fred Kane, Charles Maschal, George Ingham and Emile Hem¬ ming. When Mr. Ingham died, William Foster was put in his place. William R. Pennington is the present chief of the Nor¬ walk police department. He has been chief since the con¬ solidation of the city in 1913 and was a member of the local police force for 20 years before that time. The de¬ partment now includes 44 members. Martin Lengyel is lieutenant of the detective bureau; Bryan Silk, desk sergeant; Frank Raymond, desk sergeant until his death in September; Thomas Dorney, captain; Jeremiah Dorney, traffic -sergeant; John Flynn, lieutenant; Charles Page, lieutenant; Albert Fraser, detective sergeant; and Frank Stratton, roundsman sergeant. THE “NEW BRIDGE” In the fall of 1914, the modern steel and concrete 392 ROMANCE OF NORWALK bridge across the Norwalk river, from the foot of Washing¬ ton st. in South Norwalk to Liberty Square in East Nor¬ walk, was completed. Previous to this time, a wooden bridge had spanned the waters. Before the time of the wooden bridge which was built in 1867, pedestrians used a foot bridge on the side of the railroad bridge, while vehicles in South Norwalk were forced to take the roundabout road up through Norwalk, in order to reach East Norwalk. George S. Bell, father of Mrs. Ellis Taylor of 62 Cove ave., who was a member of the committee in charge of the con¬ struction of the wooden bridge in 1867 tells of the efforts of the South Norwalkers to get a bridge from their town over into East Norwalk, previous to this time. “There seems to have been a desire to build a bridge in the year 1833,“ he says in an article entitled “Reminiscenses” under date of 1894. “At a town meeting held Dec. 29, 1833, it was voted that Daniel K. Nash, Raymond Bene¬ dict, John Mallory, Thomas Benedict, jr., Ezra Hoyt, Arnet A. Nash, and Thomas Hanford, be permitted to build a bridge from Fort Point, so called, to Old Well, on con¬ dition that they put in a good draw to be opened on the approach of vessels and at no expense to the town. This scheme seems to have been backed with good solid names, every one of them, but apparently nothing came of it. Twenty years passed without an attempt to get a bridge across the river, until the old one at Norwalk was swept away by a flood in 1854.“ August 2, 1854, says Mr. Hoyt, a meeting was held with the purpose of borrowing $3,000 to construct a stone bridge in Norwalk to replace the ruined one. Now, thought the citizens of South Norwalk and East Norwalk, is the time for us to bestir ourselves and get a bridge of our own. To that end a second town meeting was called on the ninth of the month and $10,000 appropriated for a bridge at South Norwalk. Committees were named and all plans made. The friends of the project were elated but they were doomed to disappointment, for due to some unexplained reason, no CONSOLIDATION 393 action was taken by the building committee and so nothing happened. Twelve more years passed and then on April 14, 1866, George S. Bell, S. E. Osborn, D. H. Fitch, Edwin Lockwood and Samuel Lynes, M.D. (later resigned) were appointed a committee in charge of the construction of a bridge across the river at South Norwalk “with a suitable draw, and at an expense not to exceed $1 8,000.” ■ It was voted to lay a tax of three mills on the dollar to pay for the bridge. Later $7,000 additional was appropriated and work was begun on a bridge of the “best Georgia pine.” The necessity of sending south for the materials delayed the work until the following spring. The bridge was opened to travel July, 1867. Although it had first been planned to pay for the bridge by taxing the people three mills on the dollar, this plan was abandoned and instead, toll charges were used “for each man and horse, two cents ; for each vehicle drawn by one horse, three cents; for two horses, five cents; for more than two, eight cents. No tolls were to be collected on Sunday nor were any tolls to be collected from foot pas¬ sengers. At a subsequent town meeting, all toll charges were removed and passage on the bridge was free. In 1882, it was found necessary to rebuild the draw and $20,000 was appropriated for that purpose, the draw being finished in 1883. Twelve years later radical repairs were made to the superstructure and the bridge was widened to the full width of the right of way owned by the town. Agitation was commenced for a new draw bridge in South Norwalk, across the river in 1908 and on September 23, of that year, Ebenezer Hill, James Golden, J. Thornton Prowitt, Arthur Waldron, Wallace Dann and Harry Rider were appointed a committee to investigate the need. The committee reported two months later, advising a brand new bridge, a slight change of location and the riddance “of the buildings now on the bridge.” A concrete arched bridge of girder or cantilever construction, and a new draw the full width of the bridge “of the single leaf lifting type” was 394 ROMANCE OF NORWALK decided upon at a meeting, March 9, 1910. Application was to be made to the General Assembly for permission to issue bonds to the extent of $250,000. A bill, entitled “An act Authorizing the Issue of Improvement Bonds by the town of Norwalk for the construction of the New Wash¬ ington Street Bridge, and the purchase of a Park and for other purposes,” was introduced into the legislature by Rep. Henry Matheis. A volcanic town meeting under date of April 5, 1911, revealed through a resolution presented by the Hon. John J. Walsh, that the selectmen had taken it upon themselves to employ counsel to draft a bill concerning the bridge for the legislature but had failed to submit the same to the town or to advise any of the town fathers of their intention of submitting such a bill to the legislature. Judge Walsh, at the stormy session declared that the bill contained no provision for state help; no provision whereby the Connec¬ ticut Co. would be required to pay a share of the cost of the bridge which had to be built “one-third wider and ten times stronger” to accommodate the tracks; and that no provision was made whereby the buildings at either end of the pile structure could be legally removed. Just a week later, at a second “hot” meeting, John Keogh offered a resolution which condemned the actions of the selectmen, who purposed to “arrogate to themselves powers and duties contrary to the wishes of the voters of the town,” which made mention of the fact that “there are many and weighty reasons why the said Washington st. bridge should be built by a bridge construction committee rather than by the selectmen” and which urged that the selectmen be instructed to withdraw their substitute bill. The resolution was voted in the affirmative. The bill finally passed by the legislature provided for a concrete bridge with steel draw; for the elimination of all buildings at the ends of the proposed bridge; for the estab¬ lishment of a park; for the issuance by the town of bonds to the extent of $250,000. In addition, the state promised CONSOLIDATION 395