NJ PROBATION COLLECTION: S IS FOR SOMERSET

My New Jersey Probation Officer Collection is home to this fine badge. It is letter "S" for Somerset County.

If one doesn't know anything about Jersey and has to move to the Garden State this would be an excellent place to work.

There are many fine towns in this community with lots of open spaces and green lands. In days gone by Jackie Kennedy chased the foxes in those hills. In another sport Mike Tyson practiced is skills in his home located here.

During my early years as a probation officer I recall conversations with officers in Somerset. The talks were always focused on salary and benefits. Somerset was number one, and I don't believe they had any real cases. Okay they did.

One conversation that I have a fond memory of involved travel expenses. Where I worked we got paid by the mile, and you had to account for each mile very closely. We had the largest staff in the State, and one car.

They guys in somerset did not have to worry about accounting for their daily travel. Their County provided a fleet of cars. Dispite this luxury, coupled to the number one salary, they wanted more. I was told that they were strongly pursuing new cars with am-fm radios. I guess that tells you how long ago this trip down memory lane goes.

The badge above is from those days long gone. I estimate it to be 1960 vintage or earlier. It is in fine shape . It is gold finish with recessed blue letters. It reads: Probation, Officer, Somerset County, N.J. It has a State Seal in a field of Blue at the center giving a very impressive appearance.

As noted with other badges in my collection the "old county probation department" doesn't exist any more except under glass in my collection. I have had it over 20 years now. It provides a great addition to this collection, and also to my fine Collection of Memories.

CITY COLLECTION: R IS FOR RAHWAY

R IS FOR RAHWAY. This City is probably best known for the State Prison that has the Rahway zip code. Over my lifetime the prison had made the news on many occasions.

The well know "Scared Straight" program was founded in this facility. Inmates serving life terms created it "to help" juveniles get on the right track. Television made this program a heroic success. The criminal justice folk loved it and made it a sentencing tool. Schools sent kids for a visit on a regular basis. My feelings, as to its value, is neutral.

Maybe the experience being inside a tough prison was beneficial to some kids. I just don't know how one can say a day with the inmates is what did the trick keeping these kids "straight."

I saw the benefit to inmates getting special privileges to be part of the show. Good for them, but was that the real motive to help the kids?

Over the years Rahway and the prison became synonymous. With a little help from the politicos that was fixed. The institution officially changed its name to East Jersey State Prison. As a result the world is supposed to forget the community name where this institution is located. From what I know everyone still says Rahway, but in truth that was only the mailing address. The prison is actually in Woodbridge, NJ.

The City of Rahway dates back to the 1600's. Today it has a population in the area of 25,000. It has a major interest to me as a collector because of its location. It sits on some major roads and lines up with cities like Linden, Elizabeth, and Newark.

Of course this City has a fine "PD" and having a couple of their older badges in my collection makes me quite pleased.

As the pictures reveal one, Special Police #90, is a real antique. I believe it goes back to late 1800's to early 1900's. It is in excellent condition, and a great item to have in my collection.

The second badge is mid 1900's and shows the rank of "Captain". The remaining letters read Rahway Police, NJ. The letters are reverse blue on gold. The condition is also excellent.

When I look at them my mind travels back in time to many visits "inside" the prison, including a fifteen minute experience in a isolation cell. It was not expected, but a friend, on the inside, thought I'd enjoy the experience. It did make a memory, and Collecting Memories is a major part of this hobby.

CITY COLLECTION: P IS FOR PATERSON

P IS FOR PATERSON. This City has been on my forgotten list for a couple of decades. I don't have any real reason to put this place out mind. Maybe it's just because it took me over 30 years to get a badge to put in my New Jersey Cities Collection that I put it on a back burner.

Things change and I finally got a beauty from this City. Paterson is a great addition, in fact it is a Major City. I have the top twenty pretty well covered.

Paterson should be well know historically. Alexander Hamilton helped develop the community as a planned industrial location a couple of hundred years ago. The power of the Passaic Falls was harvested here; Mills were established; and eventually Paterson, known as the Silk City, became a major player nationally as well as internationally.

I had to look up the information about Hamilton, but I did remember the Falls all by myself. I have actually seen them, and the "first" submarine was developed here by John Holland. Why this location would be selected to build and test a "sub" is a mystery.

It is also a mystery, with all my friends in Passaic County, why it took me decades to get a "City" badge from this community. I certainly tried hard.

As luck would have it this hole in my collection was finally plugged. I got the above beauty at the collectors show in Orlando. It definitely has to be real, because Florida is where New Jersey Cops' retire. They bring their badges and memories to Ft. Lauderdale , Miami, Naples and so on.

This one is stamped with the number 141 on a silver tone finish, while "Paterson Police" is reverse stamped from the back. In the center is the N.J. State Seal. There is a pin and a "C" clasp in working order on the rear.

I am really glad to see this badge make it to my New Jersey City Collection. Very glad to have it, but never thought I'd find it in Orlando, Fl.

NJ PROBATION: O IS FOR OCEAN COUNTY

I've been slacking off on writing these memories and covering my badge collection at the same time. Well now is the time to catch up.

I think it is time to do The Probation Collection again. Checking the records I see that I am up to the letter "O". This means Ocean County. It is one of New Jersey's waterfront communities on the Atlantic.

I have two badges from "Ocean" in the display of County Probation Departments. As noted in earlier articles these County Department became part of a uniform State service in 1994. That seems like yesterday as I sit by the keyboard typing, but time is flying. That was sixteen years ago.

Looking back there are a lot of nice memories from events in Ocean County. As a kid I recall many visits to the Boardwalk in Seaside Park, NJ. That was a great resort town that had upward population swings between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

Seaside Park was flanked on one side by the Atlantic Ocean, and the backside by Barnegat Bay. I had the good fortune of having a boat in the family and used it frequently, often beaching it near Barnegat Light House. Those were the good old days.

I got the nice badges just before the State takeover from an officer who actually grew up in Newark. The man lived only a few blocks from my home. We didn't know each other then, but became close while working as elected officers for the State (Probation Officer's) Association. I recall, like it was yesterday, him slipping me a small package wrapped in a paper towel at one of those meetings.

The badges are nearly identical. In probation there was the entry level "Officer" rank. The next title was that of "Senior Probation Officer." There were a couple of more ranks, but I only got these two. I guess there wasn't enough paper towels to obtain a rank set.

Both badges have an Eagle set on top of a sunburst. The have black filled recessed letters, and are silver tone in color. Despite their age they are in great shape. Today they are under glass in a display of badges from County Probation Department. They look mighty nice in my opinion, and brighten the walls of my den with fond memories of days gone by.

ORLANDO - "VACATION CAPITAL POLICE COLLECTORS SHOW"

As Phil Rizzuto, the Ex Yankee, would say, "Holly Cow."

I actually said more then that when it was announced that my New Jersey Exhibit won the "Best Badge Display" trophy. This was totally unexpected, but certainly very much appreciated.

I took over one hundred badges in cases to the show. On the first tripod I had twenty cities represented including most of New Jersey's largest. They are displayed in alphabetical order starting with the little city of Absecon. There is also one from Elizabeth, a major city, where Rizzuto resided.

On the table was a huge case holding fifty badges. This group represents those communities in N.J. that are not Incorporated as a "City." I started hanging on to badges in this group years ago while trying to satisfy the quest to have a New Jersey City Collection. They too are in alphabetical order starting with Bayonne, and ending with Wyckoff.

Next to this case are two small displays. they are not (unfortunately) rank sets, but do represent some nice old badges from the Village of South Orange, and the Township of Union.

Before the day was over I had the good fortune of adding a nice old badge from the City of Paterson, and a Chief's badge from the Borough of Fort Lee. These were nice badges but I had a problem acquiring them I didn't bring a check or enough cash. Thank God my wife, who served as my deputy at the show, had a check. I won't say she gave it up gladly, but she DID give me the money. All I could say was "Holy Cow."

On the second tripod in my exhibit were two cases representing the City of Newark. One case hold quite a few "unique badges" from the City that I obtained while searching for the few gems, in the second case, from the Newark Police Department.

There are so many more that are needed to complete the collection. I think I need something like 500 more for the Towns, Villages, and Boroughs section alone. I could probably use a half dozen more for the "City" group, and God only knows what would satisfy my thirst for Newark badges. If I ever got them all I don't know who, Rizzuto or my wife, would be calling me "Out at Home." I guess there is always a limit.

At the show I limited one badge to a single case. I displayed it along with a picture (1934) of the Newark Police Band. I am particularly proud of this item as my father was the last Commander of the N.P.D. Band. As a boy I held a brown paper bag containing a couple dozen of these badges. Now I have but one.

It took me forty years to acquire these badges now on display on the four walls of my den. I treasure each one, along with the story behind obtaining it. Having the collection recognized by others in the hobby warmed my heart and makes me very proud. When Sgt. Doug Sarubbi presented the trophy I think I broke his hand when we shook.

Sarubbi was the sponsor of this show, and he sure made me feel good. Of course he wasn't around when it came time to take the exhibit down, and load up the car. I am sure he will help next year when we meet again.

REMEMBER AIR RAID DRILLS AND CIVIL DEFENSE

The Fire department badge is a little smaller than the one given out by the police. The one pictured here is in mint condition, and is finished with gold tone plating. It has recessed blue lettering that states: "Deputy Chief, Newark Aux. Fire Dept." In the center is a nice blue circle, with that "triangle" filled in white and the well known red "CD" in the center. This is a very nice item.

In addition to the badges my Civil Defense Collection includes a couple of other items. One is an "old armband" that is marked with the red, white and blue circle. This one is marked on top with the word "Warden." On the outside of the triangle are the letters "D and C" while inside is the traditional "C and D." I am not sure what the "D/C" is all about, but I got it from a person in Newark so I display it with the badges.

The last item, a twenty pound hat, is my wife's favorite even though she was very concerned and said: "Where are you going to put that." I found a spot, even though it wasn't my first thought. It sits on top of the hutch on my desk. The wife was surprised and inquired: "Your not going to put that up there, are you?" It fit, and I think she likes it now. I do. It's history and brings back those memories of when I was a kid hiding under my desk, during an air raid warning test, back in grade school. A great memory.

These items go back a long way.

I was in grade school when every once in a while we had to hide under our desk, or march down the hall to a "safe" location. There were these warnings posted all around the school, as well as outside on telephone poles advising in case of an alarm get to a safe location. Some people even had bomb shelters.

If memory serves me correct the warning signs were a triangle sign. It was yellow in color. To a kid it was 'kinda' scary. Was someone really going to drop an A bomb on us kids up in Newark, N.J.? Who was going to help us if there was an attack?

The answer to the question was the Civil Defense people. All around the country civilian volunteers were trained and ready to assist local police and fire department in a variety of ways: Crowd control, traffic management, and medical services.

Almost every community had a Civil Defense unit. As a kid I didn't know that. Due to my focus on Newark memorabilia I learned that these units and there "triangle" identification, with colors red, white, and blue, was nationwide. I've seen Civil Defense badges, from other States, and the "triangle" is on everyone. They can be a nice focus for badge collectors, however, My interest is only Newark.

Over the years I have acquired a few "CD" badges and other items. The badges featured here are all similar shape whether issued by the police department or the fire department. It's easy to see which department had more money to spend.

The badges issued by the police are bigger, so that makes them more impressive under the "bigger is better" rule. They are finished with black recessed letters on a silver tone finish. They read: "Auxiliary, Civil Defense, Police, Newark, N.J." Each badge has a four digit number on the bottom panel.

Funds must have been short as the center seal is nothing like the seal on the fire badge, or on the seals seen from other communities. All read police, but only one has a slightly different presentation which is obvious from looking at the pictures.

LOW TECH RADIO

This item is from the N.P.D. It is an early low tech "radio." It carries the number 75 on its wood stock.

I think it is kinda cool as my Dad was one of the first real radio operators in the Newark Police Dept. He had a license to operate radios, but He probably never saw this type. It was used long before he was born.

In reality this item is really a signal Rattle. It was used in the 1800's. It was definitely made and used before Marconi, broadcasting at 77.7 clickohertz.

It has no electric cords. It has no batteries. It has no "On" or "Off" switch, or volume control. The Darn thing is made of wood, and now that wood is very old and dry. It requires a lot of TLC when handling.

The Rattle is roughly 8 inches top to bottom. It has some weight to it. So it might have had a "secondary use" which could explain some of the scratches and little dents here and there. I guess that makes it a "fun" tool too.

When the man in Blue was patrolling the streets of Newark, and had a need to communicate he would make the rattle emit a click. That sound could be heard by other officers in the same area. The sound could be received a block away. A response message could also be sent out by another officer using his Rattle.

This was an important tool back in the 1800's. The "clicks" were actually real time status reports. These sounds could alert other officers when help was needed. To this collector this early form of communication is very interesting. It is the roots of modern day communication.

Rattle #75 is now a nice supplement to my badge collection. It is proudly displayed along side of other treasures that have retired to Florida.