 |
 |
 |
| The Star. This was the first badge of the
New York City Police Department. It was made of brass and worn between
1845 and 1857. The star was worn over the left side of the policeman's
coat and was his only badge of office, since he wore no uniform. |
Metropolitan Police (1857-1870). This was
a white metal shield, adopted by the Metropolitan Police District and
used by all the department in the system. The shield has no distinct
identification representing the city. It took a special act of the
Legislature in 1857 to supplant the abolished Municipal Police and
establish the Metropolitan Police in that year. |
Municipal Police (1870-1875). These white
metal shields with copper numbers proved most unpopular and were
recalled in 1875. |
 |
 |
 |
| Municipal Police (1875-1889). A white
metal design adopted to replace the previous "acorn" badge. |
1889-1898. The commonly called Potsey due
to it's resembling a folded tin can that the city children would use as
a tossing implement in a popular sidewalk game of the same name. |
1898-1902. This was the first shield of
the Police Department of the City of New York after it's consolidation
in 1898. |
| |
 |
|
| 1902 to present day. Our
modern shield is made of nickel silver. It is first die-struck in a drop
hammer which gives it impression and then is pounded until the desired
height of the characters is reached. The perimeter is then blanked and
embossed and the numbers and lugs are hard soldered. The badge is then
dipped, cleaned, nickel-plated and polished to a high gloss. |
