SAN ANTONIO – A non-descript closet at Public Safety Headquarters is packed with history.
Photos, uniforms and artifacts in yellow crates sealed with crime scene tape, and other memorabilia on shelves are just some of what the newly created SAPD Historical Society wants to put on the display, perhaps in a museum of its own someday.
Behind the effort is a 31-year veteran of the San Antonio Police Department, former police chief Bill Gibson who retired in 1995.
"Since that time, I've immersed myself in history, through research and collecting items when I can," Gibson said.
He said sharing his passion for history is Steven Ramsey, who works in internet technology at Fort Sam Houston.
"One of our driving motivations is to get this history out of this closet where the public can see it," Ramsey said.
Ramsey said if not, "It's history preserved but it's a story untold."
"That's our goal is to open this up for everybody to enjoy," Gibson said.
They said the material is being archived and catalogued, then a decision will be made on how best to display items in the collection. Gibson said his preference would be that the collection is displayed at a free-standing museum -- not at SAPD headquarters.
Ramsey said the society's Facebook page has been an important first step, with countless photographs dating back decades. He said it also gives families and officers, past and present, the opportunity to recognize people they knew and served with, and then share their memories with others.
But both men said the next level will be to actually see many items up close, to get that kind of connection with the past.
Gibson said among his favorites is a cherished old photograph of Officer Alejo Montes, the maternal grandfather of the late District Judge Mike Machado, who was a hero seriously burned during World War II.
The former chief also pointed to a photo taken in 1924 long before the current bargaining negotiations over the police contract. He said it shows those participating in a cowboy competition to raise money for the city's pension fund "using police officers and firefighters that were cowboys."
Gibson said stories like that are what make his efforts worthwhile.
He said he also learned about an officer in 1873 who tried shooting a rabid dog in Main Plaza and Military Plaza, until finally he got close enough that the dog bit him.
"The officer two months later, dies from rabies," Gibson said.
Gibson, who started out as a patrolman himself when he joined the force in 1964, said it's important for the officers of today to learn about the department's past.
He said, "Knowing your history makes you a better person and it makes you proud of who you are now."
Gibson said the SAPD Historical Society invites anyone with a passion for history who wants to help, to attend a 1:30 p.m. meeting Nov. 8 at Public Safety Headquarters downtown.