In 1905, the
Great Anthracite Coal Strike threatened public safety in Pennsylvania. An organized force
was needed to provide the service of protecting our citizens; hence the creation of the
Department of State Police, the first organization of it's kind in the country and one
after which many other police agencies were modeled.
Ninety-six Pennsylvania State
Police troopers who have died in the line of duty were memorialized at the State Police
Academy in Hershey on Friday, marking the 110th Anniversary of the organization's
formation.
The gathering honored the
troopers' service as part of the ranks of state police, which were first created on May 2,
1905. Gov. Tom Wolf proclaimed May 2nd "Pennsylvania State Police Day" to
pay tribute to those who have died while serving in the "noble organization."
Governor Tom Wolf speaking at the memorial. The Pennsylvania State Police held
a ceremony to honor the 96 members who have been killed in the line of duty in the
institution's 110th years of service at the Pennsylvania State Police Academy in Hershey on
Friday May 1, 2015. (Credit Photo) Daniel Zampogna,
PennLive
During the ceremony, acting state police commissioner Colonel Marcus L. Brown delivered
his remarks to the standing-room-only crowd.
State police troopers, he
said, "courageously step up and defend the line between peace and anarchy. They care
enough to look danger or death in the eye and say,
'I must serve honestly and faithfully, and if need be lay down my life as others have done
before me, rather than swerve from the path of duty.'"
His words were followed by a roll call, which named the
fallen troopers from Private John F. Henry in September of 1906 to Cpl. Bryon K. Dickson II and
Trooper David Kedra in September of 2014.
The troopers' names will remain memorialized by engravings on the Wall
of The Fallen outside of the academy.
Questions regarding the 110th Anniversary celebration
event may be directed via email or
telephone HEMC at 717.534.0565.
MUSEUM EXPANSION
The PSP-HEMC is adding a 6,000-square
foot, two-story addition to the Museum, which will increase the existing facility by 350 percent.
The expansion is being triggered by a $160,000 grant from the Dauphin County Commissioners. Funds
are provided by the gaming industry in Pennsylvania. Read more
Listen to the
PennsylvaniaState Police Anthem
