Remember These Popular Nyack Police Officers?

Back in 1991, our village leaders decided the Nyack Police Department was too expensive, and disbanded the force. Orangetown PD picked up the duties, and 17 years later, residents are still wondering if it wouldn't be better to have our own cops.

I'm not going to join that discussion here—I'm just going to offer some memories.

The first mention of police in Nyack I can find started in 1872, when Constable Frank Jones was hired and Garrett Demarest was appointed Chief Constable. They were joined in 1873 by Constable Sereno Hubbel. In 1881, Thomas Curran was a Constable in the Village. He later was given the title of Police Chief. Michael Furey took over as Police Chief in 1903. The Nyack Police Department was formally organized April 21, 1930, and William Varderman was appointed the first Police Chief of the new department.

I have been researching the many members of the Nyack Police Department and have found 178 men and a couple of women who served our community over the years. They walked the beat along Main and Broadway and knew just about everyone in town; some of us more than others.

If you grew up in Nyack before the bridge, perhaps a particular cop stands out in your mind. For me it was Pete Gentile, a Nyack cop for more than 30 years. Most of us met him while he was checking up on us on our way to or from Liberty Street School or making sure we were behaving ouselves in Memorial Park. Pete also raised championship Bulldogs in his spare time. Some day I will have to tell you about the time he "arrested" me... oh, the secrets of my crime wave.

Nyack never had a large force. Most of the time it numbered about 20 officers. In the late 70s, a young Nyack High Grad, Arthur Keenan, became the village dective, replacing long time cop Tony Guerreri. Art was wounded in the Brinks robbery back in 1981. I am sure many remember that day: four of Nyack's finest stopped a truck at a roadblock in Mountainview Ave. In a fierce gunbattle, the Brinks conspirators claimed the lives of Sergeant Edward O'Grady and Police Officer Waverly "Chipper" Brown.

(One of my favorite old time memories comes from Eddie O'Grady's dad. He ran a delivery business in the village for customers in the Grand Union on Main Street and the A&P down on Broadway. Eddie and I often road along with him carrying bags of of groceries up several flights of stairs anxiously awaiting the quarter tip.)

Officer Brain Lennon was the 4th cop in the gun battle and luckly he was not injured.

Nyack's cops were like a family to us. Many officers grew up here, and in fact to be a Nyack cop you had to live in the village. To Frank and Joe Rectorvic, the job really was a family affair. From the 60s to the early 80s, the brothers walked village streets, usually working different shifts. Joe, the younger brother, became a sergeant.

One of Nyack premier bowlers was a Nyack Cop. Sgt. Warren Austin organized a junior bowling league at the Nyack Bowling Center and taught the sport to many of us kids. He was a big man and he opened his heart to guide many kids toward productive lives...and along the way he poke a few of us with his nightstick.

If you chose to break the law in the 70s and took off running there wasn't much chance you could outrun the track stars of the Nyack PD. Don Clancy, at one time, was the fastest man in Rockland. He held the county records for the 100 and 220 yard dashes. A few years later Stanley Young held the county record for the 660 yard run. These two guys usually got their man!

There are many more of our cops who patrolled the streets of Nyack whom I haven't mentioned—friends of mine like Pete Cacciamani, Louis Caglione, Joe Gagliardi. Perhaps you remember Ray "Stracky" Strack, who broke up many a bar fight in town, or Charlie Sherwood, or my cousin Justin Kaney... lots of memories, and yes, a few tickets along the way to the credit of the Nyack Men in Blue!

Do you have a favorite memory of the Nyack PD? Please share with our readers!

PHOTO contributed in 2017 by Tyrone E. McNeill