About the Glocester Police Department

GLOCESTER, RI POLICE DEPARTMENT

The Glocester Police Department is responsible for the preservation of the public peace, prevention of crime, apprehension of criminals, protection of the rights of persons and property, and the enforcement of the statutes of the State and the Ordinances of the Town of Glocester.

At full staffing, the Glocester Police Department has 18 sworn officers assigned to various duties. This includes 12 patrol officers, 3 Sergeants, 1 Lieutenant, 1 Captain and the Chief of Police. The Glocester Police Department also has 1 police K9, "Tate" who is disciplined in narcotics detection and detecting live human scent.

MISSION STATEMENT

The mission of the Glocester Police Department is to protect life, liberty and property and maintain civil order while creating and maintaining a partnership with our citizens and business owners to enhance public safety in order to increase the quality of life in the Town of Glocester.

The men and women of the Glocester Police Department shall strive to be a highly trained and well respected law enforcement agency. We will work together with our community in solving the problems facing Glocester. The success of this mission depends our developing a higher level of trust and understanding among Glocester’s police officers and the community. In forging this partnership, we pledge our dedication and diligence to the duties and responsibilities granted to us by the United States Constitution, the Rhode Island Constitution and the Home Rule Charter of the Town of Glocester. We will be resolute in our goals of protecting life, liberty and property and in and enforcing laws and ordinances.

In our efforts to meet our commitment of delivering professional public safety, we pledge to respect our motto of “An Honor to Serve – A Duty to Protect.”

We shall continuously strive to attain excellence in law enforcement by recruiting, hiring and training the most qualified personnel available and providing our employees with effective leadership, supervision and training.

ABOUT OUR COMMUNITY

Located just 20 minutes west of Providence, Rhode Island, Glocester is considered a rural community. With a population of approximately 10,000 residents and an area of 56.8 square miles, the community provides a small town atmosphere and affordable living. Glocester serves as the gateway into the northwestern part of the state while also serving as an entry point into Connecticut and Massachusetts.

The first evidence of permanent settlements occurred in what is now Glocester before 1700. These first settlers concentrated their work on land clearing and cultivation. In 1731, a division from the Town of Providence occurred that established a new town called “Gloucester.” At first the Town name used the English spelling to honor the Duke of Gloucester, after whom the Town was named. Shortly after its founding, a dispute with England resulted in the Town changing the spelling to Glocester in a desire to differentiate them from England. This division included the area which comprises present day Burrillville. In 1806, however, Burrillville was established as its own separate town. Thus, the boundaries of Glocester were instituted to their present configuration.

Chepachet Village is the historic, civic, and economic development center of the Town. The Chepachet Village National Register district was established in March 1971 to recognize the important role the village played as one of the very early settled communities in the State. There are more than 50 structures of historical and architectural significance in this compact historic district, one of which is a structure built in 1799 housing the Brown and Hopkins Country Store. Brown and Hopkins opened in 1809 and claims title to being the oldest continuously operating store in the United States.

The Village of Chepachet is also part of the historic Blackstone Valley, Rhode Island's National Historical Park. This 240 square mile region runs from Worcester, Massachusetts to Pawtucket, Rhode Island along the forty-five mile long Blackstone River. The area holds the distinction of being the birthplace of the American Industrial Revolution and of our nation's economic freedom.

FM Global is the Town’s single largest tax payer. FM Global is Rhode Island's largest private company and one of the world's largest commercial and industrial property insurers. The company specializes in engineering-driven underwriting and risk management solutions and property loss prevention research.