Washington

Washington State Patrol History - Sept. of 1921 six motorcycle patrolmen of the original Highway Patrol were commissioned. The agency was renamed as Washington State Patrol in 1933. The Legislature acknowledged the need for a police organization that was mobile and could be concentrated immediately at any place in the state where the public safety was endangered. The Highway Patrol Division officially became known as the Washington State Patrol, which had been given full police powers. However, the police powers were not to be used unless ordered by the governor or requested by other law enforcement agencies. The State Patrol was placed directly under the Governor who was authorized to appoint the chief.

Communications were haphazard, with patrolmen receiving some of their orders through the mail, some from county sheriffs and some from their supervisors by telephone. The first radio was installed on a motorcycle in the Vancouver area in 1933 by Patrolmen Harry Williams. Operating on a City of Portland (Oregon) Police frequency, the unit gave accident and traffic information.

While radio communications had a brilliant future, motorcycles were on their way out by 1933. Our picture the vehicle style is the type that replaced the motorcycles. These units were light, fast of the panel delivery van type, which could be used as a combination patrol car, mobile jail and ambulance, were proving much more versatile for all-weather work than the motorcycle.

In 1936 the State was divided into four Patrol districts, with a captain in charge of each district; Tacoma District One; District Two with HQ in Seattle; District Three in Yakima and District Four in Spokane. As the uniform was designed and redesigned, one apparel feature was introduced in 1937 that remains to this day – the bow tie, unique in law enforcement. Originally red, the bow tie was changed to black after a couple of years and has remained a fashion constant as the WSP uniform evolved to its present crisp blue shirt with dark blue pocket flaps, French blue trousers striped with dark blue and royal blue campaign hat.

In 1942 the WSP’s first radio station (Communications center KNFG) was installed in Olympia. Pictured is Dwight Johnson, one of the Patrol’s first radio operators at the controls. This system had ample CW communications and with networking out of state representation.

WSP Olympia had zone HF radio telegraph with its own WSP stations; Seattle; Spokane; Summit; Vancouver and Yakima. The remainder were on the state wide only radiotelephone net of 2490 kc am 42.54 VHF FM.

Aberdeen; Bellingham; Bremerton; Cathlamet; Chehalis; Colfax; Ellensburg; Everett; Kelso; Kennewich; Mt. Vernon; Okanogan; Pt. Angeles; Walla Walla and Wenatchee. In 1940 the WSP had one of the largest fingerprint files west of the Mississippi. Scripted from WSP, APCO material dated 1940 and 1951. W8SU 2009

WSP has its own statewide non-trunked, repeater-based, VHF radio network that covers the state. Towers for this network can be seen near highways and look like cell sites, but with longer antennas. In August, 2004, one of these towers near Vancouver, Washington was damaged by an arsonist, taking out WSP communications in Clark County.

WSP dispatchers handle WSP, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Liquor Control Boad, WSDOT and Washington State Parks. K8SMC 2009