Bloomingtoid

From 1847 to 1860, Bloomington had only one law enforcement officer, called the town marshal. The town marshal was an elected official, just like the mayor and the board of trustees. The first to ever be elected town marshal was David B. Judah. By 1860, a group of designated men -- night watchers -- began patrolling the city when the town marshal went off duty. No record exists that indicates how the night watchers were appointed, but this system of town marshal and night watchers served Bloomington until the mid-1890s. \n(www.bloomington.in.gov)