{"id":3774,"date":"2025-01-04T10:10:14","date_gmt":"2025-01-04T15:10:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/?p=3774"},"modified":"2025-01-04T10:10:20","modified_gmt":"2025-01-04T15:10:20","slug":"the-history-of-torontos-first-police-force","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/eternal\/the-history-of-torontos-first-police-force","title":{"rendered":"The History of Toronto\u2019s First Police Force"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Toronto’s police force boasts a rich and eventful history. It is recognized as one of the oldest in North America and ranks as the third-largest in Canada. Learn more about its evolution and operations in this article from torontoyes.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police Beginnings Rooted in Politics<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 1834, when Toronto was officially incorporated as a city, municipal officials decided to establish a police force to maintain order. Before this, able-bodied male residents were required to take night shifts as special constables.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 1835, Toronto had employed five full-time constables\u2014one officer for every 1,850 residents. Officers earned five shillings for daytime shifts and seven for nighttime duty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Between 1839 and 1860, the police faced significant challenges. Violent clashes occurred between Tories and Reformers, while Irish Catholics and the Orange Order fought bitterly. Law enforcement often chose sides, prioritizing the protection of certain groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During this turbulent period, Tories tried to intimidate Reformers by deploying the police to forcibly disperse rallies. In the spring of 1841, after Tory candidates George Monro and lawyer Henry Sherwood lost to Reformers Isaac Buchanan and John Dunn in municipal elections, tensions escalated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The day after their victory, the Reformers and their supporters paraded along Church Street, only to be ambushed by armed Orange Order protestors from Scarborough near the Coleraine Tavern. Parade participants were attacked with bottles and stones, and shots were fired at Buchanan and Dunn. One Reformer was killed. When Monro was asked to call for police intervention, he refused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A subsequent commission report criticized Monro for “neglect of duty” and highlighted how the police had been used as a political tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The First Laws<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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In 1843, Toronto passed the Party Processions Act, which banned political parades. However, enforcement proved ineffective, as municipal police believed provincial laws fell outside their jurisdiction. The law was repealed a few years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 1849, a more impactful law was passed, establishing Toronto’s Police Magistracy. This magistracy, led by George Gurnett and George Duggan, appointed Samuel Sherwood as Toronto\u2019s first Chief of Police. Known for his mild temperament, Sherwood refrained from imposing strict rules on his subordinates. The officers wore uniforms, but they varied widely and were often dirty, tarnishing the force’s reputation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The inadequacy of Toronto’s early police force became evident during two 1855 riots. The first involved firefighters brawling en route to extinguish a blaze. When police intervened, the rioters turned on them. The officers\u2019 testimony during the subsequent investigation was so contradictory that the firefighters were acquitted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A few weeks later, another riot broke out between the same firefighters and circus clowns. This time, police stood by and watched as the fight unfolded. The city’s leadership condemned the police’s inaction and called for a reorganization of the force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Reformers, led by Mayor Adam Wilson, came to power, significant efforts were made to professionalize the police force. The Police Commission advocated for higher wages to attract qualified candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the winter of 1895, the Police Commission dismissed the entire force and replaced it with a team of 24 constables from England and Ireland, chosen for their moral integrity. Local candidates were excluded to avoid old biases and familial ties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new Chief of Police, William Stratton, instilled military-style discipline in the force. He introduced a daily order log outlining plans for emergency situations. These reforms helped lay the foundation for a more effective and professional police service.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Toronto’s police history reflects its growth as a city and its challenges in maintaining law and order during formative years. Today, the Toronto Police Service stands as a testament to decades of evolution and reform.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Toronto’s police force boasts a rich and eventful history. It is recognized as one of the oldest in North America and ranks as the third-largest in Canada. Learn more about its evolution and operations in this article from torontoyes.com. Police Beginnings Rooted in Politics In 1834, when Toronto was officially incorporated as a city, municipal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":419,"featured_media":2185,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[497],"tags":[1433,1799,1801,1802,1798,1800,1439,1029,1441,1803],"moimportance":[648],"motype":[491],"moformat":[89],"class_list":{"0":"post-3774","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-about-the-mayor","8":"tag-canada","9":"tag-first-laws","10":"tag-history-of-the-first-police","11":"tag-history-of-the-first-toronto-police","12":"tag-police","13":"tag-police-started-with-politics","14":"tag-politician","15":"tag-politics","16":"tag-toronto-3","17":"tag-toronto-police","18":"moimportance-vichna","19":"motype-eternal","20":"moformat-vlasna"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3774","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/419"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3774"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3774\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3781,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3774\/revisions\/3781"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3774"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3774"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3774"},{"taxonomy":"moimportance","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moimportance?post=3774"},{"taxonomy":"motype","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/motype?post=3774"},{"taxonomy":"moformat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/torontoyes.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moformat?post=3774"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}