workers from Spring Mill furnaces were always involved in the weekly fisticuffs, as were the employees from the furnace at Matsunkânow Swedelandâand the mighty ironworkers of Alan Wood. As the industries grew, so did the taverns and saloons, and by 1870, the Saturday night get-togethers also included the quarry workers from Whitemarsh, the lime burners from Plymouth and, of course, the steel workers from Connaughtown.
The Conshohocken Police Department was formed in the early 1870s and was already more than fifty years old when this photo was taken in the mid-1920s. The four-man police force, led by Chief William Heald (standing in the back on the right), was made up of Samuel Himes, Daniel Donovan and Frank Jacquot. Burgess John Hampton is standing in the back on the left. This photograph was taken outside the police lockup once located on West Hector Street.
Eventually, the company workers formed themselves into company gangs. There were the Connaughtowners, the Guineatowners and the Pikers. Just outside of the borough were the Hickerytowners and the Limeburners from Plymouth. Adding to the rowdiness of the Saturday night drinking parties were the boatmen who worked and traveled along the canal, who tied up their boats on Saturday afternoons until they were sober enough to unhitch the boats on or about Monday morning. The town residents also had to contend with workers from the freight trains as well as the free travelers of the trains known as hobos.
Residents who lived in certain parts of town had trouble traveling to other parts of town because the gang mentality transferred to all parts of the community. West Elm Street became known throughout the borough as âthe Boweryâ and was a very rough stretch of real estate to pass through, especially when an outsiderâparticularly one from Connaughtownâattempted to make his way through the Bowery. As stated earlier, Lower Maple Street was known as Cork Row, named for the Irish section of town, long before Italians started moving into the borough along Maple Street and Cork Row eventually became known as Little Italy.
By 1871, borough officials were under a lot of pressure from the residents to stop the lawlessness and hire a sheriff or policeman. Borough records show that the town was paying fifty dollars per month for two men in 1871 for part-time police service. The borough hired a constable before hiring any police officers. George McGonigle was hired as constable in 1871 and held the post until 1873. John Stemple, known as âJacky,â and Michael Wills, who owned and operated a cigar store on Elm Street for many years, wore civilian clothing with badges as an emblem of authority. Too often, the two part-time officers were not taken seriously, and they were always outnumbered on Saturday nights, forcing the hiring of a full-time police officer.
Jack Harrold, Conshyâs First Cop
Conshohocken Borough Council honored the request of Burgess William Hallowell, and in March 1873, Jack Harrold was appointed as the boroughâs first full-time policeman at a salary of forty dollars per month. During Harroldâs first year serving as a policeman, he was standing on the corner at Fayette and Hector Streets in front of the newly formed First National Bank of Conshohocken. While Harrold was on duty at two oâclock in the morning, a man whose identity was never discovered stood on the opposite side of the street at what was then known as Saylorâs Corner. The unidentified man fired three shots at Officer Harrold from a revolver; one of the bullets grazed his shoulder. Officer Harrold, unfazed, chased the man down Fayette Street, past the canal and lost sight of him along the railroad tracks.
Part of Harroldâs duties was to light and extinguish the gas street lamps. A single-room jail cell was set up along the Pennsylvania Railroad, and when Harrold would have more than one man in the cell, especially on a Saturday night, the
The Conshohocken Police Department was formed in the early 1870s and was already more than fifty years old when this photo was taken in the mid-1920s. The four-man police force, led by Chief William Heald (standing in the back on the right), was made up of Samuel Himes, Daniel Donovan and Frank Jacquot. Burgess John Hampton is standing in the back on the left. This photograph was taken outside the police lockup once located on West Hector Street.
Eventually, the company workers formed themselves into company gangs. There were the Connaughtowners, the Guineatowners and the Pikers. Just outside of the borough were the Hickerytowners and the Limeburners from Plymouth. Adding to the rowdiness of the Saturday night drinking parties were the boatmen who worked and traveled along the canal, who tied up their boats on Saturday afternoons until they were sober enough to unhitch the boats on or about Monday morning. The town residents also had to contend with workers from the freight trains as well as the free travelers of the trains known as hobos.
Residents who lived in certain parts of town had trouble traveling to other parts of town because the gang mentality transferred to all parts of the community. West Elm Street became known throughout the borough as âthe Boweryâ and was a very rough stretch of real estate to pass through, especially when an outsiderâparticularly one from Connaughtownâattempted to make his way through the Bowery. As stated earlier, Lower Maple Street was known as Cork Row, named for the Irish section of town, long before Italians started moving into the borough along Maple Street and Cork Row eventually became known as Little Italy.
By 1871, borough officials were under a lot of pressure from the residents to stop the lawlessness and hire a sheriff or policeman. Borough records show that the town was paying fifty dollars per month for two men in 1871 for part-time police service. The borough hired a constable before hiring any police officers. George McGonigle was hired as constable in 1871 and held the post until 1873. John Stemple, known as âJacky,â and Michael Wills, who owned and operated a cigar store on Elm Street for many years, wore civilian clothing with badges as an emblem of authority. Too often, the two part-time officers were not taken seriously, and they were always outnumbered on Saturday nights, forcing the hiring of a full-time police officer.
Jack Harrold, Conshyâs First Cop
Conshohocken Borough Council honored the request of Burgess William Hallowell, and in March 1873, Jack Harrold was appointed as the boroughâs first full-time policeman at a salary of forty dollars per month. During Harroldâs first year serving as a policeman, he was standing on the corner at Fayette and Hector Streets in front of the newly formed First National Bank of Conshohocken. While Harrold was on duty at two oâclock in the morning, a man whose identity was never discovered stood on the opposite side of the street at what was then known as Saylorâs Corner. The unidentified man fired three shots at Officer Harrold from a revolver; one of the bullets grazed his shoulder. Officer Harrold, unfazed, chased the man down Fayette Street, past the canal and lost sight of him along the railroad tracks.
Part of Harroldâs duties was to light and extinguish the gas street lamps. A single-room jail cell was set up along the Pennsylvania Railroad, and when Harrold would have more than one man in the cell, especially on a Saturday night, the
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