City of London Police Museum

The City of London Police is responsible for law enforcement within the City of London — the rest of Greater London is placed by the Metropolitan Police Service — and has its headquarters art Wood Street Police Station, where there’s a small but interesting museum dedicated to the history of crime and policing in the Square Mile.

The City has been ‘policed’ since Roman times (27 BC–476 AD) — Wood Street is built on the site of a Romain fortress — but the City Of London Police wasn’t formed until 1839. The City of London Police Museum reveals it’s history, including uniforms, early walkie-talkies, London’s first police call box, and even gold medals won by the City’s policemen in the 1908 Olympics.

It also recounts grisly tales of the City’s criminal past (murders, robberies, assassinations and gun battles), including a small collection related to the Jack the Ripper murders of 1988, which photographs of the victims and information about the investigation, and another covering the Houndsditch Murders of 1910 which led to the infamous Siege of Sidney Street.

Look out for…

  • The 3D virtual reality hologram of one of Jack the Ripper's victims Catherine Eddowes—complete with what she was wearing on the night of her arrest in 1888 and in a Victorian London police cell.
  • Examples of City uniforms from 1829 through to current issue.
  • Exhibits from policing in Victorian London, including truncheons, uniforms, criminal’s tools.
  • Example of early radio communication, the development of the “walkie talkie” of the 50′s and 60′s and the modern Airwave radio. World War 2
  • The display showing police uniforms and equipment from WWII, medals awarded to City officers, archives and ephemera from the period.
  • A small collection related to the Jack the Ripper murders of 1888, including photographs of the victims and information about the police investigation; the Houndsditch Murders of 1910 which led to the infamous Siege of Sidney Street.

Did you know?…

  • In 1908, 1912 and again in 1920 the City of London Police Force won Olympic medals for their role in the ‘tug-of-war’ competition. On display is the Olympic gold medal from the 1920 Olympics. After 1920 the ‘tug-of-war’ competition was dropped from the Olympics, and that means that to this day the City of London Police Force are the reigning champions.

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All information is drawn from or provided by the museums themselves and every effort is made to ensure it is correct. Please remember to double check opening hours with the venue concerned before making a special visit.