Volunteer policeman John Dehornlon (left) and Henry Leach Marshall (right) catching speeders on Sheridan Road, c. 1900.

In 1869, with the incorporation of the Village of Winnetka, the need for law enforcement was already pressing. Police departments were a relatively new concept, with the idea beginning in London in 1829. However, with a newfound community that its founders hoped to grow, safety and security were of the upmost importance to attract settlers to the town. And so, in 1869, the town appointed its first “marshal.”

For many of Winnetka’s early years, a marshal and a few volunteer officers were in charge of law enforcement. A Village Patrol was started around 1910, and by 1913, there was an official part-time chief and 4 officers making up the police department. Waino M. Peterson, Winnetka’s first official police chief, was responsible for Winnetka’s first police car: his very own Cadillac.

Winnetka police officer, 1975.

With an official, full time chief of police, Winnetka’s police force began to grow steadily. By 1934, the department had grown to a chief, a police captain, a lieutenant, a sergeant, 12 patrolmen and 1 policewoman. As time went on and Winnetka grew exponentially, so too did the needs of the police department. By 2019, 150 years after Winnetka and its police force were founded, the department had grown significantly: 38 people now call the Winnetka Police Department their job.

With the addition of more patrol officers, records specialists, administrative team members and a social worker, the Winnetka Police Department has grown and adapted with the Village it has sworn to protect.