Lakewood Lore

Sidewalk runners excel olden days' speed limit

One of the first ordinances passed here in 1889, when we became the hamlet of Lakewood, made it unlawful to go any faster than eight miles an hour, a speed that a lot of today's sidewalk runners exceed.

Of course, in that pre-auto period, the law referred strictly to the "riding or driving of any horse or horses, or other animal or animals."

Vernon Lieblein, longtime Lakewoodite, remembers being arrested in 1921 for going 20 miles an hour in his Hupmobile on Detroit Avenue. The speed limit then was 15 mph.

According to Lieblein, two policemen working as a team arrested him. "one stationed at Arthur dropped a white handkerchief as I passed, and that started the other, who was one block away at Mars, to counting the number of seconds it took me to drive between the two streets," he said.

First marshal and chief of police of the hamlet was Charles Townsend. He was appointed Aug. 31, 1889, and 11 policemen were sworn in to assist him.

In 1896, two portable steel cages were bought for a lockup. They were originally located in the "Halfway House," a tavern on Detroit Avenue near what is now Thoreau Avenue. The house became our first jail.

Initially, police patrolled their beats on bicycles. In 1914, the city bought its first motorcycle. In time, the number was increased to five, although they spawned a number of accidents.

In 1917, the Lakewood police department acquired its first patrol wagon, a Model T Ford. The automobile was acclaimed for its efficiency and soon light cars replaced the motorcycles.

When a new fire station was built on Warren at Detroit in 1913, the police were given some space in it. Not until 1923, however, did the police department receive a building of its own – the old Cuyahoga Telephone building at 1484 Warren Road. It cost $25,000 and was remodeled to include a cell block in the basement.

In 1926, Florence Schimke Bott became Lakewood's first policewoman. She formed a women's bureau for handling juveniles and women and continued it for a quarter century.

The move to the current municipal building on Detroit took place in 1959. From an original 12 officers a hundred years ago, the police department, now under Chief Edmund Mecklenburg, has a staff of 79. From a bicycle brigade, there are currently 21 patrol cars. And from twin portable steel cages, we now have 11 modern cells that can hold 22 prisoners.

This Lakewood Lore article by Dan Chabek appeared in the Lakewood Sun Post February 23, 1989.

Reprinted with permission.

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