Democratic Sentinel, Volume 7, Number 40, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 November 1883 — Policeman and “Cops.” [ARTICLE]

Policeman and “Cops.”

Somebody wanted to know how policemen ever came to be called “cops.” The term originated in New York, and wp,s first given to the police force under Mayor Fernando Wood, from the copper badges which they wore. It was not long before the dictionary of thieves’ slang was enriched by a new word, “coppers.” Sir Robert Peel was an English magnate who gave considerable official attention to the reconstruction of the London police force, and hence the terms “bobbies” And “peelers,” the last of which was transplanted in American soil. —Boston Globe.