Capitol Police

On 28 January 1884 the General Assembly enforced an act that authorized seven policemen to protect Capitol Square. The measure was enforced despite Governor William Evelyn Cameron's refusal to supply his signature, arguing that he already held the power to appoint capitol guards. Because the act gave the Register of the Land Office authority to appoint the policemen, Cameron felt he would lessen the power of the governor's office by signing the legislation into law.

Security forces at Capitol Square actually have an extensive history, protecting the governor long before the 1884 legislation. Governor George Yeardley used guards as early as 1618 to protect himself from Native Americans. However, with events such as Governor Thomas Jefferson's flight from Richmond during the Revolutionary War and Gabriel Prosser's plot to seize weapons held at the Capitol in 1800, Governor James Monroe acknowledged the need for a permanent guard. Legislation passed in 1801 provided for such a protective force. In these early days, the men, known as the Public Guard, served as a military unit. They slept in wooden barracks on the square and hung their laundry throughout the grounds. The men garnered some praise by helping to turn back Dahlgren's raid on Richmond during the Civil War but struggled for respect throughout the years. The Public Guard disbanded in 1869 during Reconstruction, and not until the legislation of 1884 did the General Assembly reinstate the force, providing each man with a salary of $65 per month.

The transformation from loosely organized and untrained guards to professional policemen took several decades. At one time, the governor summoned the guards by blowing a whistle or shooting a pistol into the air. Today, each officer must pass a training program that includes field work. Responsible for seventy-five buildings in Richmond, the Capitol Police Force works on a three-shift schedule. And, undoubtedly, its role in protecting the governor and Capitol Square from harm and destruction has become even more important since September 11, 2001.