William Stephen Devery | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | January 9, 1854 New York City, US |
| Died | June 20, 1919(1919-06-20) (aged 65) |
| Occupation(s) | New York City PoliceSuperintendent Later changed toChief of Police Baseball team owner |
| Children | 2 |
William Stephen Devery (January 9, 1854 – June 20, 1919), nicknamed "Big Bill". was the last superintendent of theNew York City Police Department police commission and the first police chief in 1898.[1][2] Devery andFrank J. Farrell later co-owned theNew York Yankees ofMajor League Baseball.
He was born inNew York City in 1854. In 1878, at age 24, he was hired as a patrolman. On September 16, 1881, he was made a roundsman, and on May 28, 1884, he was promoted to a sergeant. On December 30, 1891, after 13 years on the force, he was promoted to captain. As a police captain he once told his men, "They tell me there's a lot of grafting going on in this precinct. They tell me that you fellows are the fiercest ever on graft. Now that's going to stop! If there's any grafting to be done, I'll do it. Leave it to me."[3] On February 5, 1897, he was arrested and charged with bribery and extortion. After conviction, he was dismissed from the force. He appealed his conviction in theNew York Court of Appeals. It was overturned and he was reinstated to the force and promoted to inspector on January 7, 1898, and Deputy Chief on February 14, 1898. He was then appointed Chief of Police on June 30, 1898.[1][4]
In 1899,Theodore Roosevelt and Republican state legislators established a committee, headed byRobert Mazet, to investigateTammany Hall corruption under the leadership ofRichard Croker.[1]Lincoln Steffens, a popular journalist of that time wrote of Devery, "As a Chief of Police, he is a disgrace, but as a character, he is a work of art."[3] In 1901, the Police Department was re-organized again, and has been headed ever since by aPolice Commissioner. The first CommissionerMichael C. Murphy appointed Devery as his Deputy Commissioner. Both Murphy and Devery went out of office on January 1, 1902, whenSeth Low became Mayor of New York.
Later, withFrank J. Farrell, he bought theBaltimore, MarylandAmerican League baseball team and moved it to New York and renamed it theHighlanders. The team almost won the American League pennant in 1904, but otherwise had poor records during the Farrell-Devery ownership era. For $300K, they sold the team in 1915 toJacob Ruppert Jr. andTillinghast L' Hommedieu Huston.[5][6][7]
He died on June 20, 1919, at 4:15 p.m. ofapoplexy inFar Rockaway, New York.[4]
| Government offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by John McCullagh as Superintendent of Police | Chief of the New York City Police 1898–1901 | Succeeded by Michael C. Murphy as Police Commissioner |
| Business positions | ||
| Preceded by | Owner of theNew York Yankees withFrank J. Farrell 1903–1915 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
