Follow
Please add anyone who has served in the South Australian Police Force. Although we will be focusing on the early Police force of South Australia, all profiles that served are appropriate to add.
Formally established in 1838 under Henry Inman, the force is the oldest in Australasia and it is the third oldest organised Police Service in the World. Unlike other Australian police forces, which originally employed soldiers or former convicts, the South Australia Police enlisted only volunteers. This occurred because South Australia was the only free colony on the continent.
In the early stages of the force, the staffing team consisted of ten mounted constables and ten foot constables under the command of the Inspector Henry Inman.
By 1840, Major Thomas Shouldham O'Halloran was appointed as the first official Commissioner of Police. At this time, SAPOL consisted of one Superintendent, two Inspectors, three Sergeants and 47 Constables divided into foot and mounted sections.
From 1848 to 1867, SAPOL also served as the state fire and rescue service until the South Australian Metropolitan Fire Service was formed. They also supplied the Civil Ambulance Service 1880 til 1954 when it was taken over by the St John Ambulance Service.
SAPOL
- 1893: Introduced bicycles for metropolitan and country foot police.
- 1893: Pioneered the fingerprint system in Australia.
- 1915: Appointed the first women police in the British Commonwealth - Kate Cocks and Annie Ross
- 1987: The first Australian police service to introduce videotaping of 'suspect person' interviews.
- 1999: The first Australian policing jurisdiction to appoint a female police officer, Senior Sergeant Jane Kluzek, to a tactical group.
- 1993: Introduced Operation Nomad, as a policing initiative to reduce the threat of bushfires.
- 1996: Crime Stoppers launched.
- Established Neighbourhood Policing Teams in various metropolitan areas.
- 2011: The first police jurisdiction in Australia to launch its own web platform connecting mobile phone users to the latest police news.
1847
POLICE FORCE - Colonial Secretary's Office, Adelaide, April 1, 1847. His Excellency the Lieutenant-Governor having authorized an augmentation to the Mounted and Metropolitan Police Establishment, the following appointments will have effect from this date inclusive, viz. —
MOUNTED POLICE.
- Henry Alford, to be Sergeant-Major.
- John Alfred Burgon, Corporal
- Dennis Kenny, Corporal
- Alexander M'Donnell, Police constable
- Carl Voss, Police constable
- William Square, Police constable
- Wm. Gillick, Police constable
- David Wickham Floydell, Police constable
- James Todd Berrie, Police constable
- Thomas Richard Wickham, Police constable
- E. J. Meany, Police constable
- Robert Shearman, vice
- John Lamb, promoted;
- John Forbes Leith, vice, Police-constable
- John Alfred Burgon, vice, Police-constable
- Joseph Keech, vice, Police-constable
- Dennis Kenny, vice, Police-constable
- John Lacey, vice, Police-constable
- James Pow, resigned
METROPOLITAN POLICE.
- Charles William Litchfield, to be Inspector.
- William Reid, Sergeant
- Edward Burford, Sergeant
- William Rounsevell, Sergeant
- Thomas Young, Police-constable
- James Cains, Police-constable
- Richard Jasper, Police-constable
- James Furlong, Police-constable
- Henry Gregg, Police-constable
- Thomas Hollingsworth, Police-constable
- Robert BlackPolice-constable
- George Smith, Police-constable
- John Gregory, vice
- William Reid, promoted
- Harry Marlen, vice, Police-constable
- Edward Burford, vice, Police-constable
- George Sutton, vice, Police-constable
- William Rounsevell, vice, Police-constable
Resources
Please feel free to use this image on profiles for our dedicated police officers
This project is included in The History Link Project - Trace your ancesters! you can add projects here