Jeremiah Donahue, Northfield's First Chief of Police The following appears in Picture Northfield, Julia McIntire and Richard Cleveland, published in 1985

JEREMIAH DONAHUE, NORTHFIELD'S FIRST CHIEF OF POLICE, 1906-1926

"In his gold-buttoned frock coat and vest, uniform cap perched on his head and cigar in hand, Jeremiah Donahue looks every inch the small-town police chief of the first quarter of this century - which, in fact, he was. From 1906 until his death in 1926 he kept law and order in Northfield as the village's first police chief, treating townspeople and Norwich students alike with that mix of firmness, tolerance and humor which every small-town policeman must possess. The son if Irish immigrants he was, by turns, an employee of the Central Vermont Railway, a farmer and a policeman, as well as the town's tax collector, constable and truant officer. His badge, which bore the number two, is now in the possession of the Northfield Historical Society.

"A story related by Marguerite Leani, Jerry's daughter, illustrates the man's fine touch. One autumn evening he saw some Norwich students walking up Turkey Hill, and as he was wise in the ways of cadets, he waited for them at the Savoy Theater. When they reached East Street on their return trip, Jerry stopped the group and questioned them. During their discussion, a loud noise issued from under the coat of one of the crew, and when Jerry ordered the cadet to open up in the name of the law, a turkey flopped to the ground. He sent the cadets back up the hill to return the bird to its owner - and that was the end of that.

Photo Courtesy of the Northfield Historical Society A police badge worn by Northfield police officers in the early twentieth century. "Apparently the cadets with whom he came into frequent contact bore no grudges, for the War Whoop, the Norwich yearbook, was dedicated to Jerry Donahue one year - an obvious mark of respect and affection.