The Hatching Cat of Gotham

The LIRR had its own police department as far back as 1868. When Robert E. Kirkham, chief clerk in the office the president of Long Island City, was appointed to Superintendent in 1905, the plan was to create a force of 200 men to patrol the terminal stations and freight yards, and to give special attention to those stations that operated by electricity. The special force merged with the Metro-North Railroad Police to form the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Police (MTA Police) in 1998.