In the
spring of 1915 there were many communities in Pennsylvania where policeman
were forced to work 12 hours a day, 365 days a year. In an emergency, they
could be called back to work additional hours, without pay. Pittsburg was
included in these communities. Policemen complained about this, of course, but
there was no organization to channel protests to the proper authorities. The
individual policeman could only suppress his grievances and accept conditions
as they were.
In Pittsburg two
veteran police officers were thinking of these things. Martin L. Toole “worked
the turn from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m.” and Delbert Nagle “worked the turn from 3 to
11:40 p.m.” As chance would have it, Toole walked the beat Nagle lived on and
Nagle walked the beat Toole lived on. The two became close friends, seeing
each other daily as Nagle made his rounds. Then, according to Nagle, “at
midnight, on my way home, we always met at the corner of Flowers Avenue and
Second Avenue in the Hazlewood district” and chatted before Nagle proceeded
home.
Walking an early
morning beat in those days was an isolated, lonely task. There were few
automobiles and no neon lights to disturb the dark quietude. Especially when
the weather was good, a thinking man had time to think. Martin Toole was a
thinking man. In April, as he made his rounds, his mind was on his Brothers.
If labor could organize, shouldn’t the police also find a way? Not as a labor
union. Toole didn’t want any part of that. But an organization for the “social
welfare of all the police in Allegheny County” need not be a labor union.
Every night for
the next two weeks they met at midnight to compare notes. If the authorities
heard of the plan the effort might be stopped before it really got underway.
So each worked “underground” and “in secrecy.” They were especially careful
when talking with fellow workers, cautioning each to be “careful who he talked
to.” By the end of the first week in May, Nagle had eight additional names on
a petition for the “United Association of Police” which stated: “We the
Undersigned Do Hereby Agree To Support And Maintain The Above Entitled
Association Until a Constitution Is Duly Drawn and Officers Chosen [sic].”
It should be
noted that when 23 men of the Pittsburg Police Department “who were willing to
take a chance” met at 9 a.m. on Friday, May 14, 1915, they met in the midst of
the Lusitania crisis. This first meeting of the Fraternal Order of Police was
held in the Wabash Building on Liberty Avenue. The first business was the
election of officers as follows: William H. Larkin, President; Delbert H.
Nagle, Vice-President; Martin L Toole, Secretary; William J. Milton, Financial
Secretary; and Walter D. Minnick, Treasurer. This election was considered
temporary until a charter was obtained.
The first
question debated was the name of the organization. There was dissatisfaction
with United Association of Police because “that name sounded too much like
union, and union sounded too antagonistic.” During the debate, Nagle moved
which was seconded by Charles Freebourne, that “this organization be known as
the Fraternal Order of Police.” The motion carried, and thus Delbert Nagle
gave the Order its name.
The Grand Lodge, Fraternal Order of Police, boasts a membership in excess of
300,000 members. Unlike other police organizations, full membership in the FOP
requires an applicant to be either a sworn, active duty officer or a qualified
retired law enforcement officer. The FOP is both the oldest and largest
organization representing law enforcement in the United States. There is a
full time staff located in Nashville Tennessee that handles the organizational
operation of the Lodge. Also located there is a research staff that can be
called upon by State and local Lodges for background work in a multitude of
areas. Primary in the operation of the Grand Lodge is training. Many various
types of training are offered for members throughout the year and in various
locations. State and local Lodges can arrange for training of specific areas
of concern through the Grand Lodge Training Committee and little or no cost.
Equally important to the Grand Lodge is it’s legislative efforts on a national
scale. The Grand Lodge has established a full time staff and office in
Washington, D. C. for this purpose. They focus on national legislation in the
United States Congess of interest to law enforcement across the country. An
important part of this is the Grand Lodge endorsement of a Presidential
candidate every 4 years.
