BEAUMONT POLICE DEPARTMENT HISTORY

W.A. "Bill" Langham was appointed Beaumont's new city marshal and served from 1881 to 1896. There was one deputy marshal -- R.W. Tevis -- who was the father of Reid Tevis who was destined to become a detective of national fame and Beaumont chief of police in 1922. There was no equipment at this time aside from a small building known as the "Calaboose" located at Cypress and Tevis Streets. After several escapes from this rickety jail, the structure was soon replaced with another at the same location. Dixon Gray succeeded W.A. Langham and served until 1901.

In 1900, Beaumont had grown to a city 10,000 population and incorporated. James Stewart was duly elected city marshal and served from 1901-1908. In 1908, James Stewart was succeeded in office by Nott Smith. Smith's title of City Marshal was changed to Chief of Police in 1910. The city had grown to a population of 20,000 by this time. The force consisted of 14 uniform officers and two detectives with the usual two 12-hour shifts. In 1912, the police department moved with other city departments to the Nancy Tevis Market on Main Street. It was a large Spanish structure that failed earlier as a market.

In September 1914, Police Chief Smith died in office and Night Chief R.R. Baker was appointed to succeed him. The city now numbered about 30,000 inhabitants. The force consisted of 15 uniformed officers, four detectives and one detective/fingerprint man. The department employed its first motorcycle officers in 1914 enforcing the city speed limit of 8 mph. It was during Baker's tenure that the city obtained its first police car, a 1916 Dodge. Prior to this, transportation was by foot, horseback or bicycles. In 1920, R.R. Baker was removed by the city administration. B.B. Johnson was appointed Chief of Police. Beaumont's population at this time was approximately 40,000. The force numbered 20 uniformed officers and six detectives.

The Beaumont Police Department hired its first black officer in 1921.  The department has no surviving records on that first black officer; however, some seem to remember him as "Red," which was not his real name.  Within three years, "Red" was gone and, like his name, no one seems to remember what happened to him.  John Freeman joined the department in 1924.  As with "Red," no one can recall why or when Freeman left the force or the area.  It was not until 1940 that the department hired its next black police officer -- Davis "Jack" Straughter.  But by 1953, when Buster Turner joined the department, Straughter had left the department for a better paying job at Mobil Oil.

In April 1922, Chief Johnson was succeeded by Reid Tevis as Chief of Police. Tevis was a popular chief. He changed the department to three eight-hour shifts and established the first traffic squad for the department. Under his tenure, the force numbered about 30 uniformed officers, six detectives and two officers in the Identification Unit. Tevis gained national fame for his knowledge about pickpockets. He went to the State Fair of Texas and the World's Fair to teach other officers how to spot and catch pickpockets. His grave is marked with a state historical marker.

On Jan. 10, 1925, due to ill health, Chief Tevis left office and was replaced by Carl Kennedy as Chief of Police. Under Kennedy, the force increased to 62 officers. In 1928, the department moved once again to the new City Hall complex. However, by 1950, officers returned to the Tevis building after the city spent $300,000 for remodeling. This is where the department remained until 1975 when the current police station at Main and College was built. The old Tevis market building was later torn down and replaced by a parking lot for the current city hall complex. In May 1934, Chief Kennedy resigned to take a job in the private sector. The former Captain of Detectives, L.B. Maddox, was appointed to succeed him. It was in the early 1930's that the department took a leading role in police communications by placing radios in police cars -- the first such system west of the Mississippi River and south of St. Louis. Officers in patrol cars could hear dispatches, but they could not talk back.

In the 1940's and 1950's, Beaumont's downtown became alive with taverns, gambling houses and hotels that catered to the prurient interests of their customers. A handful of high-ranking officers found it beneficial to look the other way. From 1941 to 1961, Beaumont saw four police chiefs come and go. In 1961, Willie Bauer was named Beaumont Police Chief following a scandalous vice investigation by the James Commission. This investigation ended the open vice and corruption in the city. Bauer promised to clean up the city which now had a reputation as "Sin City USA." Bauer retired from office in 1984 having served the longest tenure of any Beaumont Police Chief. There have been three police chiefs since Bauer, the current chief being Thomas J. Scofield.

The department hired its first female officer in 1976.  Ella Faye Hargraves (Ford) Woodsmall was employed at the department in 1973 as a civilian secretary for the Crime Prevention Unit.  She began attending the police academy in January 1976 and graduated in March 1976.  Officer Woodsmall was promoted to sergeant in October 1979.  This was the rank she held until her retirement in December 1998.