This is both old and unique. At first glance it looks like an old Sergeant Badge issued prior to 1957. It is in fairly decent shape considering its age.
What struck me first was the Seal located at dead center. It is most definitely the City Seal of Newark, NJ. The words: "Police" and Newark, NJ" were the next areas of this badge that jumped at me. They are stamped into badge shell and look exactly like the Sergeants shield.
The next sections are rather odd. At the top, and bottom are panels with blue recessed lettering. The top reads: "Asst. Chief Identification," and the bottom panel says, "Officer." Also sitting there is the number 6.
In the day Newark had a section called "R & I." This was Records and Identification, and I believe it was staffed by police officers. This rank shield just might be something a civilian employee brought in when they were hired to do some of the work. I really don't recall that there ever was an officer tittle called Asst. Chief.
I suspect that when the current Sergeant's shield was introduced in 1957 some of the old badges became available and new titles suddenly emerged on the scene.
I thought this was certainly an unusual badge, so I put it with other items that I refer to as Newark "Uniques." It is a cool badge, and I am glad to have it looking over my shoulder, where it tells me tall tales of my City a lifetime ago.
No comments:
Post a Comment