NJ PROBATION: M IS FOR MORRIS

"M" IS FOR MORRIS in my collection of defunct County Probation Department badges.

I lived in this County for almost thirty years. Initially it was just far enough from beautiful Newark to feel safe, and yet close enough to drive, down Highway 24, to where the job was actually located - 32 Johnson Ave. Neweark, N.J.

I doubt that office still exists. I don't plan to visit it on my next trip as I remember enough about it going back to the "Riots of 67." It was already an old two story building located in what was a fairly nice area on the South Side. Just up the street was South Side H.S. The name was changed to Maclcom X. Shabazz H.S. That took place back in those fun days of knocking on doors, and praying your car starts. It was fun to be a probation officer.

Morris County became my home in the early 70's. When I went home it was really a retreat. I lived in a place called Chatham. It was only 14 miles West of the office, but in a different time zone for sure.

Homes in this County were lived in. Street corners had signs letting you know where you were. The grass was for landscape purposes. This could be a great place to work, but that never happened.

While my career kept me for the most part in beautiful Newark I did have the pleasure of making several professional acquaintances in the MCPD. I often found a means to get to their County seat either for a meeting, court appearance, or a lunch near the Town Square.

Through these friends, and really years of begging, I finally got a donation to my collection. This was an amazing multiple item contribution that I exchanged for a good deal of work. I look at them and know I earned them.

As the pictures show these items are in great condition. They each have a multi color State Seal at center. Each one is gold tone, and represents a Title in the Department: Investigator, Senior Investigator, Officer, Senior Officer, Principal Officer, and Assistant Chief.

I am missing only one title to make this a true rank set. Nonetheless I have been very appreciative of each of these beauties, and the fine memory of obtaining them a couple of decades ago.

CITY COLLECTION: O IS FOR ORANGE

O IS FOR ORANGE. There are four communities that border on each other in New Jersey. "ORANGE" is one of two that are cities.

I have a couple of badges from the City of Orange, but no recollection as to how I got so lucky to get them. I have two fine badges, only one is in the "City Display." First, as usual, I have to write something about the City.

I remember "Orange" quite well. The City is the size of a postage stamp, and is cut in half by Interstate 280. I'd like to say that this community is a quiet suburban town, but that would be a huge stretch of the imagination.

This City was a fun town: They had a bar on almost every corner. At one time Rheingold Brewery was located there - right next to the Interstate. The beer was decent, but the Miss Rheingold Contest's were better. Those are pleasant memories.

I guess it was a good 40 years ago that I visited some night spots in Orange. One joint was said to be frequented by "Two Ton" Tony Galento. He was a boxer and a colorful guy. In the 1940's, into the 50's, he reportedly owned a bar in this City. Later he was a bar tender and a community hero. He was still a legend in the 60's when I was just learning about "whiskey and women."

Galento fought Joe Louis, and boasted before the fight that: "I'll moider da bum." He became pretty famous for that line. He also became a legend for knocking Louis off his feet. Despite that famous knockdown, Galento lost the fight.

As a boxer he had a style that has been reported to make: "Mike Tyson look like Lord of the Princes." Tony Galento could have been the SWAT Team if he were a Cop. In the early 70's I believe Orange P.D. did have a cop that, alone, qualified as "The Swat Team." He taught self defense classes at the Essex County Police Academy. This brings me back to the badges from Orange in my City Collection.

Looking in the case where the majority of my "City Collection" is housed, there is an old traditional style "Officer's Badge" from Orange, N.J. It is in excellent condition, and carries the number 80 in the lower panel. The top panels are marked: "City of Orange" followed by "Police." I also have a Lieutenant's badge that is a real relic. This one is in pretty good condition. The paint in the letters is somewhat worn. The State Seal was placed in the center of the badge prior to plating. The overall finish is still very good.

As noted above I don't recall how I obtained these fine collectible badges. I am very happy to have them, along with some good memories relating to this City.

NJ PROBATION COLLECTION: M IS FOR MONMOUTH

Monmouth County is a nice diverse location. It touches the Atlantic Ocean, gets sliced in half by the Garden State Parkway, and what is left over is beautiful Horse Country.

The community of Red Bank sits on top of this County looking from the North down the Coast to the South. I always remember the place as small and maybe quaint. I don't have a clue what it is like by today's standards. Maybe on my next trip back to NJ I'll have to investigate this location along with several others.

Freehold is one of the big towns in Monmouth. I remember the Freehold Raceway. It was "big time" if you liked horse racing. It also rang a bell when I looked at these great badges in my "New Jersey Probation Collection." It is the County Seat of Monmouth County and the spot where justice is administered.

While I didn't work here I did have the occasion to visit the Court House on a couple of matters. Later I met officers for dinner at the Freehold Hotel. Now that is a hard place to forget. It was decorated like a club for Jockeys and Horses. Besides pictures on the wall the place was adorned with bridles, saddles and other related items (all nailed down).

The meetings with other officers had nothing to do with horses or doing the job. The focus was working conditions, salary, grievance procedure and all that stuff. A few of us, from several different counties, would come together with the hopes of creating a strong unified voice for Probation Officers. It was an uphill path, but it was a start.

From those meetings I established friendships that helped me over the years on the job, and with the collection. One good guy was able to secure the above two silver tone badges for me. The read: Probation Officer, Monmouth County, NJ. They are now out of use, and the agency is now run by he State.

These fine pieces of history make a nice appearance on my wall, and they also trigger many fond memories.

A NEWARK MEMORY

One of my major interests in collecting Law Enforcement memorabilia is things from my hometown - Newark, NJ

The above is a picture of an old poster that was lightly distributed to select viewers after the riots. One should recognize "Dorothy" at the top. In small print it reads: "Spelling Out the Problem." Then at the bottom, as big and ragged as possible, is: "NEWARK."

The picture takes me back 40+ years. Maybe someone else will enjoy looking at it here.

CITY COLLECTION: O IS FOR OCEAN CITY

O IS FOR OCEAN CITY. It really is a bona fide "City" in the Garden State. The place certainly is not a major "City" by population count, but because its' municipal status it is of "major" importance to me. It is number 18 in my collection of NJ City Badges.

Let me tell you something about this place on the Jersey Shore. The Community became a City, before my birth, on March 25 , 1897. It is situated in Cape May County on the Atlantic Ocean.

It has a great beach. It is consistently in the top ten of New Jersey's Best Beaches. Because of this fact the Summer population reaches well over 100,000. It is also known as a great family community and boasts the title of "America's Greatest Family Resort."

In its early days it was known as Pecks Beach. It was a Whaling Center and, because of the great beach attracted many locals looking for a nice dip in the Ocean. The whales are gone, but the Beach still is great. There are just under 20,000 permanent residents.

When the summer gang arrives the population jumps to over 100,00. That's a large number of people. Most of them can be found on the Boardwalk or cooling off in the Ocean. You won't find many cooling off at "Miller Time" as the sale of alcohol has been prohibited since 1879.

As a probation officer I got to attend an official conference here a number of years ago. Since I am retired I can be excused if I don't recall what this conference was about. I do recall that after the meetings there was "no problem" having a cold Budweiser. It was at this meeting that I was given a contact who had an interest in collecting badges and patches.

A fine New Jersey Probation Officer secured this badge for me at a local show. It is an old style and no longer in use. The age is estimated to be fifty, or more, years. It is in very nice shape showing some wear around the edges. It has a State Seal, of the type used way back then, featuring a blue ring on the outer circle.

Although I am not a collector of patches I do have one from this fine City. It was given to me by a Retired Jersey Police Officer who visited my area of sunny Florida to see my collection. We had a great visit, had a couple of beers, and shared some great memories.

NJ PROBATION COLLECTION: M IS FOR MERCER

Time to change gears again, so back to the "NJ Probation Collection" that I have been working on for a lifetime. I believe the collection has reached the optimal point with thirteen of twenty-one counties represented. Thank God I have a couple of rank sets included on the wall.

The item pictured above is a "Chief's" badge from the now defunct Mercer County Probation Department. It is the only one I have managed to find over the years, but it is a great find, and in great condition.

Mercer is a major county. It is on the Delaware River and scenic Pennsylvania. This is the area where General Washington rowed the boat a couple hundred years ago. There are historic tributes to him on both sides of the river.

The Barracks in Trenton are still in decent shape and offer history buffs something to see. They are located South of "The Crossing." They just may be included in the list of places Washington spent the night.

The City that developed here is Trenton. It eventually became the State Capital. That was a while ago - 1790 to be precise. The City also served for a brief period as our National Capital in the 1780's.

The Hughes Justice Complex is located in Trenton. It has a River view that is impressive. It is where the Supreme Court is located, and all of the Court's Administrative Offices. In 1994 the Court took over all judicial functions, including probation, from the county governments. With this occurrence the county departments became defunct agencies.

This badge is from the old Mercer County Probation Department. It has been obsolete for 16 years, and was perhaps used as long ago as 20 years. It is a sunburst design, with blue filled enamel in recessed letters with a multi color State Seal. It is a item this writer is proud to have in the collection.

CITY COLLECTION M IS FOR MARGATE

This marvelous badge is from the Great City of Margate, N.J. It certainly isn't a major City by any means, in fact this writer never realized that the place by the Jersey shore was an entity of its' own.

Fact is Margate is one of the places around the Jersey shore that does have City status. It is a sleepy little place that was once part of Atlantic City.

It gained its' own identity in 1885 as South Atlantic City, but twelve years later became the City of Margate. This sprawling metropolitan area ranges about eight to 10 blocks long.

If one likes to do travel and research this is a great place to visit. You certainly will get a good idea where all those "monopoly names" came from. Remember "Marvin Gardens". It's right here in Margate.

The City is well know for architecture. This is a fact that I forgot. As a kid I was dragged here to see "Lucy the Elephant." She is actually a wooden structure that is some 65' tall. It was built of wood in 1882 by a man named Lafferty and used as a hotel. Today it is a landmark. Woodrow Wilson stood inside it once.

Because of "Lucy," and the need to protect 8000 residents, there is a strong Police presence in this community. The Elephant probably gives them little to worry about. Friends tell me that the guys do a great job keeping the City a safe place.

The badge came along way to the "City Collection." It is the traditional badge that has been used by so many NJ Departments over the years with the plated State Seal set over the number box showing "22."

For an antique this item is in fabulous condition. It is only out shinned by the memory of that Wooden Elephant named Lucy. I can't believe I never wanted to really take a good look at that site. For now I'll just let the badge remind me of it.