Frank W. Northern Award
A Civil War veteran, Frank Northern served as a San Diego Deputy City Marshal from 1887 until 1889. When the Marshals disbanded, he was laid off however; he was rehired as a SDPD officer months later.Despite being almost 20 years older than many of his fellow officers,on his first night on the job he made 17 arrests and was involved in 6 fistfights. He was also shot at. Per department policy of the era Officer Northern worked 7 days a week,hours a day and was required to wear his think wool uniform at all times while in public. Even with working conditions that caused heavy attrition among fellow officers, Frank Northern became the first officer to retire from the SDPD in 1911. Frank Northern died in 1941 at the age of 96.