Videos: Oldest Retired Police Officer Turns 102

[Updated with bio] This morning [Feb 17] Commissioner of Police Michael DeSilva paid a special visit to Milton Marsh  – who celebrated his 102nd birthday today. Mr Marsh, born in 1909, is the oldest retired Police officer in Bermuda, and actually retired from the Police force before our present Commissioner was even born.

Born in St Kitts, Mr Marsh joined the Police Service in the 1940s, and was awarded the Colonial Police Medal for his contributions in the 1960s when he retired from the service. Commissioner DeSilva presents Mr Marsh with a birthday gift below:

Mr Marsh recalls Policing in his era below, saying at times they had to physically carry suspects:

The Commissioner said that  decades ago Mr Marsh received a commendation and a £5 bonus for his work on a murder case. Mr Marsh said that was good money back then, while the Commissioner joked to not “let my staff know that, because it might catch on.”

When asked if he wanted to come out of retirement and assist the Police Service now, Mr Marsh smiled and declined the offer.

Update 5pm: Police statement:

Former Police Officer Turns 102

Milton Murray Marsh was born in Charlestown, Nevis, in the British West Indies on 17th February 1909. He was raised between Charlestown and Basseterre, St. Kitts, and his father, Arthur Alexander Marsh was a police officer, so perhaps law enforcement was in his blood. After leaving school Milton worked for a time in a hardware store in Basseterre and he then became Assistant to the Head Store Man in the Works Department (similar to the old Public Works Department in Bermuda).

As a young man in Nevis and St. Kitts, Milton loved to play sports – cricket and football – and proudly says that he had to learn early how to defend himself because some people wanted to take their revenge out on him because of his father’s position as a policeman. As he says, “I had to take care of myself – the hard way.”

Milton eventually decided to visit Bermuda and, it was more or less through his father that he was able to get a job as an Assistant in Public Works although he knew this was not what he wanted to do long term. His father introduced him to the idea of joining the Bermuda Police Force but he was reluctant to do so because of his past experiences as the son of a policeman in Nevis and St. Kitts.

Soon after Milton got a new job working for a while at the Cooperative Society store on Boaz Island in Somerset.

Milton met his wife Gwendolyn (nee Williams) who was Bermudian, at Misicks Music School run by Miss Gladys Tatem. He had learned how to play the violin as a young boy in St. Kitts, and he wanted to continue with his interest in music. Their relationship blossomed and they were married on April 20, 1944 at St. John’s Church in Pembroke. Gwendolyn was the daughter of Detective Sergeant J.J. Williams, who was himself an outstanding detective and worked alongside Bermuda’s first ever Detective Officer, “D.O.” Simons.

Milton joined the Bermuda Police Force on the 30th June 1941, along with Harry Telford. When asked about how much training he received as a young recruit Milton quickly replied, “Next to nil.” He was handed a worn out flashlight, a pair of handcuffs, and a truncheon, and he worked out of Hamilton Police Station which was then located on Parliament Street next to the Hamilton Jail. The Commissioner of Police at that time was Mr. McBeath, and one of Milton’s early bosses was Percy Miller.

He also says there were not many Bermudians on the Force when he first joined. It was mainly policemen from the U.K. Milton recalled working for a while under Vernon Jackson who he described as very talented.

After working for several years out of Hamilton Police Station Milton was transferred to Western Division and worked out of Somerset Police Station at which time he lived at Ely’s Harbour. He used to walk on foot to and from the Police Station, and fondly remembers the great Somerset detective duo of Mike (Cann) and Spike (Hazel) who were very good at their job and cleared up a lot of crime.

Milton was interested in working in CID and was promised the opportunity to do so. His opportunity came after he saw a man named Montgomery Williams illegally pedaling liquor at Victoria Park. Milton caught him red-handed and he went to court and was convicted.

Milton was eventually transferred to CID and recalls working for a while with “Bo” Swainson (the first person to score a century in Cup Match). He also said that one person he must give credit to was Winston “Super” Lottimore who knew everyone and would happily pass on useful information to him about people committing crime. He credits a lot of his success as a detective to “Super.”

Other detectives Milton worked with included “Happy” Duerden, who was popular with everyone in CID because of his personality, Dave Lunn, John Joe Sheehy, Leon Bean, Bryn Jones and John Mullan. He remarked that working in CID was strange because everybody was always scrambling for promotion.

Generally at that time local officers were denied access to overseas courses, but Milton was sent on an attachment to Scotland Yard and to the Liverpool Police where he studied files and how cases were put together.

Milton recalls the Theatre Boycott of 1959, at which time quite a few police officers, including himself, were paid overtime to stand outside the Island Theatre to maintain order, make sure people lined up in an orderly manner, and ensure that picketers couldn’t physically interfere with those who wanted to enter the theatre.

During his service as a Detective, Milton received a total of seven Commissioner’s Commendations for good work during investigations. He received his first two from Commissioner Henderson within a month of each other in early 1958 for the arrests of two youths for breaking into shops, and another man for shop-breaking in which Milton also recovered the stolen property. This was after he had been promoted to Detective Sergeant.

In 1959 he received another Commendation from Commissioner Henderson, and was also awarded the sum of five pounds for his skill and tenacity in the investigation of a murder.

In 1961 Milton received two more Commendations from the new Commissioner, George H. Robins. The first was for zeal and attention to duty resulting in 8 persons being charged with stealing or receiving a considerable quantity of spirits (liquor), and the other for being a member of a team of CID officers who were responsible for a series of arrests clearing up various crimes.

His last two Commendations, also from Commissioner Robins, were awarded after his promotion to Detective Inspector; the first for obtaining valuable information which enabled the Police to prevent a serious case of arson and loss of life, and the second for “displaying persistence and keen observation” leading to the arrest and conviction of a man for stealing and “breaking out” of Masters Store in Hamilton.

It is clear that Milton was a very dedicated and resourceful police officer who greatly contributed to the efforts of the Bermuda Police Force in maintaining law and order throughout his service, and in particular during his service in CID. He paid particular tribute to the team he worked with as a Detective Inspector – Maurice “Syke” Smith, Sinclair Bean, Frederick “Penny” Bean, and Hubert Simmons who, he says, collectively did a great job in Central CID.

In 1963, Detective Inspector Milton Murray Marsh was awarded the Colonial Police Medal for Meritorious Service by Her Majesty the Queen. It is worthy of note that in order to qualify for this medal at that time the awardee had to provide:-

“Valuable service characterized by resource and devotion to duty, including prolonged service marked by exceptional ability, merit and exemplary conduct.”

Milton retired from the Force on 17th February 1964, at which time Commissioner George Robins noted that his conduct throughout his period of Service had been “Exemplary.”

One of Milton’s proudest possessions is a letter dated May 20th 1969 from then Commissioner of Police, George H. Robins, inviting him to become an Honorary Member of the Bermuda Police Officer’s Mess.

Following his retirement from the Police Force, Milton worked for many years as both a bailiff for the Courts, and also as head of Hotel Security at the Castle Harbour Hotel. On June 24, 1966, he received a letter from the General Manager of Castle Harbour, Mr. George J. Stobie, thanking him for the splendid job he had done and was doing, and the readjustments he had made to their security system at the hotel.

Milton’s wife, Gwendolyn, passed away in 1989 after a very long illness. They had been happily married for 45 years, and had two children, Milton Marsh Junior and Blanche Elizabeth Atkinson. Milton has 10 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. He still lives at his home on Serpentine Road with a little assistance from care workers.

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