Police Safety Review Tips from the 50s

You’re going to hear a lot about the time capsule that is my Mother’s attic.

I was rooting around up there last month and ran across a 24-page The Police Safety Review booklet that was distributed by the Cape Girardeau Police Department in what had to have been the mid-to-late 50s.

The Police Safety Review distributed by the Cape Girardeau Police Department in the 1950s

Archeologists determine dates by examining objects found near the target and by carbon dating. I used the first method, but mostly relied on a Rube Goldberg cartoon in it that was copyrighted in 1954. (Yes, it was THAT Rube Goldberg, but it was done in a style that you don’t normally associate with the crazy gadget guy.)

Cape Girardeau Police Department and Patrons

The Police Safety Review distributed by the Cape Girardeau Police Department in the 1950s

Safety tips show why Baby Boomers don’t run with scissors

You can see a summary of the cartoons in the booklet on my bike blog.

In a nutshell, kids were told that actions have consequences. If you were a scofflaw or careless, bad things were going to happen. You’d be

  • Killed
  • Injured severely
  • Scarred for life
  • Arrested
  • Have your bike taken away
  • Have a mark on your permanent record
  • All of the above

Really cool, gory drawings

They knew their audience. Almost everybody came to a bad end in a particularly gruesome manner.

Here’s where you can see the whole book.

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