The Yonkers Police Department's Humble Beginnings

A modest proposal led to the creation of our modern boys in blue.

On July 14, 1866, an emergency assembly was called at Flaggs Hall in Yonkers. A growing population of unruly vagrants was making the town’s streets unsafe. Supervisor Isaac H. Knox proposed “renting” 14 policemen from New York City to watch over the neighborhood.

The town passed a measure to fund Knox’s plan by a large majority. The new officers set up shop at an old hotel on Dock Street. It was the beginning of the Yonkers Police Department. 

The first police headquarters