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Capturing the History of the Bermuda Police  -   Our Bermuda Ex-Police Officer’s website was created in 2011 following a conversation  I had in the Officers Mess at Prospect with Bob MacLean who was a Canadian computer consultant hired by the Bermuda Police to upgrade the police computer system.  I had being thinking about the feasibility of having a website purely for our Ex-Police Association with the intention of providing a means for our former colleagues to stay in touch with each other, while at the same time recording our collective history as seen through the eyes of our fellow police officers. Bob MacLean assured me  it would be relatively easy to set up a website, but little did I realize then what an enormous  undertaking it would be to maintain it.    

After outlining various features of the proposed website, Bob set about designing the website and he did a first class job.  Our main features would be as follows:-

Keeping in Touch column -  This would feature news about our members all around the world, and asking them to let us know where they are, what they are doing, and having them send us photos of their acivities.  It quickly gained in popularity so much so that we have to begin a new column at the start of each year.  

Then and Now  -  This column is designed specifically for former and retired members to tell their own stories about life in the Bermuda Police. It is open to anyone who has served for any length of time, and provides an opportunity to relate your own personal history with photos wherever possible.

Hall of Fame  -  This column is intended t honour the memories of former colleaghues who are no longer nwith us,]. Theyare usually submitted by famil anf firneds, and wwe urge the families of our former colleagues to assisy us in inlcuding their loved one in ojr Hall f Fame.

Interesting Articles  -   This column features interesting articles written on a wide range of subjects related to the Bermuda Police Service or personal stories.   We are delighted to receive articles from anyone who wishes to put pen to paper, and will assist with editing where necessary.  One of the main features of this column are rhe series of fascoinatong articles written by retired Supt George Rose about cases he had dealt with, or cases he has extensively researched, some going bsck many nyears.  

Who, Where and When  -   This column features photographs submitted to us by former colleagues in which we challenge you to tell us who is in the photograph, when was it taken, and where was it taken? We usually give you a couple of weeks to figure out the answers and we then publish the correct results - if known - based on our collective memories.

Latest News and Press Releqases  -  ou will see the headings for both of these columns here on our home page,  Latest News usually contains local news, often related to the BPS, that we believe will be of interest.  Press Releases are usually about Police-related matters but we also try to bring your attention to other matters which may be of particular interest to you.

Lists -   We have compiled a swries of Lists which we may be of intyerest nboth to oujr membsr and to families who have had relatives swerve in the Bermiuda Polkce. Retired Inspector John Skinner who has devoted countless hours to producing and maintaining our Lists which include:=

List of Police Officers 1979 – 1979   CLICK HERE for this list created by John Skinner and records a vast number of those police officers who  served in the Bermuda Police during the 100 years between 1879 – 1979.  It also includes their rank and their dates of service.  We know some names are missing, so we ask that you please check through it and let us know if your name, or the name of anyone else you know who ever served in the Bermuda Police is missing. 

List of names of Cvolleagues  CLICK HERE for is is a list of those former Police officers for whom we have up-to-date contact details.  We are happy to add any names to the list but you will need to provide us with your contact details (either email or home address).  in order to be included. If you have changed your email address recently please let us know.  https://expobermuda.com/index.php/expo-lists-2/list-of-names-of-colleagues

List of Deceaed Members -  CLICK HERE This is a list of  former Bermuda police officers who are no longer with us, and it was substantially  updated and improved in April 2020 by John Skinner.   It is impossible to list everyone because the Bermuda Police has never maintained records of deceased officers except those who have died whilst still serving.  If you peruse the list and  you know of anyone who should be added to it please let us know. 

List f Nicknames -   CLICK HERE  Bermudians are famous for giving just about everyone a nickname, and those of us who served in the Bermuda Police Force were not exempt!  Our list of nicknames is quite extensive, but if you know f any that are not included pease let us knw.  

List of Bermuida Dockyard Police -  CLICK HERE This is an list of persons who served in the Bermuda Dockyard Police  prepared by John Skinner.  It is believed the Dockyard Police was formed as early as the 1880's, and the Royal Naval Dockyard formally closed in March 1951, with several former Dockyard Police joining the regular  Bermuda Police Force.  https://expobermuda.com/index.php/expo-lists-2/1019-list-of-bermuda-dockyard-police

Police History Articles -   Since we first started our ExPo website in 2011 we have collated an extevsirte swries lf articles about or polkce history in eberal, and specifc individual subjects as follows:-

 

  • “The Policing of Bermuda from the Earliest of Times”by E.A. “Ted” Burton. This excellent in-depth article on the early history of the Bermuda Police was published in the Bermuda Historical Quarterly – Autumn Edition 1955. It can be viewed in its entirely in an article “Policing of Bermuda by E.A ‘Ted’ Burton”written by George Rose and published on our ExPo website at CLICK HERE
  • Bermuda Police magazine Centennial Issue 1879-1979published in 1979.This magazine provides comprehensive information and illustrations of our  Police history on the occasion if its Centennial.  In February 2024, with the assistance of a generous donation made by Mr. Rees Fletcher, we were able to publish our collection of Police Magazines dated from 1955 - 1994 on our ExPo website. The 1979 magazine can be viewed at  CLICK HERE    :bps-magazine-1979-centennial-issue&catid=25:bps-magazine-issues
  • Illustrated Talk on History of Bermuda Police– Presented at a lecture on the history of the Bermuda Police given byRoger Sherratt during Police Week 2024 on the occasion of its 135th Anniversary. CLICK HERE You can view the presentation here on our ExPo website at   
  • Article on “History of Forensic Photography in Bermuda”written by George Rosewhich can be viewed on our ExPo website at CLICK HERE   
  • Article on “History of the Police Tug o’War Team”written by Roger Sherratt, which can be viewed on our ExPo website at CLICK HERE
  • Article on “History of Police Motor Cycle Display Team”written by George Goddard, which can be viewed on our website at  CLICK HERE
  • Article on “Bermuda’sBrave Blue Line – World War Two”.Stories of Bermuda’s Policemen who served in the Military during World War Two researched and  written by John Skinner which can be viewed on our ExPo website at  CLICK HERE
  • Article “Bermuda’s Brave Blue Line – Supplement.”More Stories of Bermuda Policemen who served in the Military during World War One researched and written by John Skinner  CLICK HERE 
  • “History of the Bermuda Police”book written to celebrate the 135th Anniversary of theBermuda Police. Initially available in bookstores it was a limited edition and may no longer be available for sale, however,  during the project to scan and publish copies of our Police Magazine collection, the highly illustrated book was also scanned and it can be viewed on our ExPo website at CLICK HERE  :bps-magazine-2014-135-years-of-service-history&catid=25:bps-magazine-issues
  • “Bermuda Police History”- This  historical review was produced in September 1999 by Chris Wilcox and was reproduced from the publication “Historical Review of the Bermuda Police Force 1879-1999  edited, designed and produced by Alexander MacDonald of the Bermuda Police . This review, which is not illustrated, can be viewed on the official website of the Bermuda Police Service at   CLICK HERE

In addition to the above publications our Bermuda ExPo website contains many articles containing fascinating  historical information uncovered when researching the lifestories of individual police officers who have played significant roles in the development of the Bermuda Police. A prime example is our “Hall of Fame” article on the life of Charles Edward “D.O” Simons, Bermuda’s Brilliant first Detective, born in 1880, who joined the Police Force in 1905, and went on to become our first “Detective Officer” in 1919 and was for many years Bermuda’s only detective. CLICK HERE for his article.      Another example is our “Hall of Fame” article on the life of Edward R. “Bosun” Swainson who, in addition to being the first cricket player to score a century in Cup Match, went on to become our first black Inspector. CLICK HERE for his article 

We have also been very fortunate indeed to have had the services of George Rose  and John Skinner who have greatly contributed to the recording of our Police history. 

George Rose has written literally dozens of articles about serious crimes, including all the visits to Bermuda by Scotland Yard where they have been called upon to assist in major criminal investigations, including the Warwick Murders in 1959, and the assassinations and murders which so shook Bermuda in the 1970’s.  As of June 2025, George’s latest article is about the infamous “Drugs Supermarket” case which resulting in the historic first showing of video-taped evidence in a court trial in Bermuda and the conviction of one of the Island’s most notorious drug dealers

John has written several in-depth articles including the “Bermuda’s Brave Blue Line series highlighting Bermuda’s police officers who served in the Military during World Wars One and Two.  John has also been involved in vital historic research project resulting in him producing the most comprehensive list of police officers who have served in the Bermuda  Police since 1879 numbering in excess of over 3,000 individual names.  Sadly, some police records were destroyed in two major fires, at the Hamilton Hotel in 1955 and the Bermudiana Hotel in 1958 which had both been used to store Government records.  Available here on our website is a list of all of the police officers who we have recorded as having served in the Police between 1879 and 1979.  John’s unpublished Master List or Full List is an ongoing project that we cannot publish on our website in light of data protection legislation. CLICK HERE to read our article about John Skinner’s Amazing List”.  

One final note regarding our police history. Since our ExPo website was first created in 2011 we have published many, many articles written by or about our fellow police officers which contain interesting information which would not otherwise see the light of day.  These include numerous articles in our “Then and Now” column in which individuals share their reminiscences of being police officers.  I would like to think that our ExPo website can be preserved so that future generations will be able to look back and have a true appreciation for the men and women who have devoted their lives to serving the greater community as members of the Bermuda Police Service.