The Metropolitan Police Department has been Washington’s city police force since 1861, when Congress established it to maintain order in a capital suddenly flooded with soldiers and refugees. These posts explore the MPD’s history, from its Civil War origins and the colorful officers who defined its early years to the crime waves and reforms that shaped modern policing in DC.
On January 31st, 1925, police raided a restaurant on E Street in Washington DC and arrested 57 people for illegal dice games. 40 years later, the same block housed the American Gaming Association. Read the story of Louis Chipouras, arrested both times!
On February 28th 1934, the first liquor license was issued in Washington, D.C. after the Sheppard Bone-Dry Act of 1917 put a major damper on libations. Learn more about the repeal of Prohibition in D.C. and the National Press Club’s first liquor license!
Get a glimpse of the wild side of DC in 1921 with this story of a police battle with a rum car! Read about the daring chase and thrilling battle between the detectives and bootleggers.
I came across an article in the Washington Times about three giants of the Washington police force … and I mean real “giants,” as in super tall cops. Well, super tall by standards back in 1903, not Gheorghe Muresan. Though these men do not eclipse GoDC favorite, Officer Sprinkle, our next “Three Things…” post will … Read more
Discover this 1918 Metropolitan Police Department recruiting advertisement, which was seeking young men and women between 22 and 35 years of age. Read more to learn about this interesting World War I era ad!
Follow the story of Julius Daranyi, a midget traffic cop in Washington DC in 1924. Relive this unique moment in history, complete with original Washington Post article, photographs, and related articles.
To satisfy your hunger for more Officer Sprinkle, I took a look into where he lived in 1900. At the time, he was 34 years old, had been married to his wife Teresa for 10 years and had been working for the Washington police force for the same amount of time. The Sprinkle family lived … Read more
Most of you probably walk right by those old police boxes scattered throughout the city. Some of them have been turned into miniature art exhibits — like the ones in Mt. Pleasant. Check out the video above of Sgt. Nicholas Breul of DCPD gives a brief talk on the history of these police call boxes.
Surely Officer Sprinkle was intimately familiar with these call boxes.
This is an odd story from the Washington Times. The paper reported on August 11th, 1908 the arrest of a young five-year-old. Yes, a little kid was arrested and it’s a bizarre story. Learn more about the unusual arrest of five-year-old Gus Oputz in Washington D.C. in 1908.
