SCcollector

That's about all that I can get to upload.

More

More

More.

And again

A few more

And again

A few more

A few more.

And again.

A few more.

And again.

A few more.

I threatened some time ago to put up some early SC humorous postcards. Some are too big too upload but here are some that I managed to post. I have a fairly large collection and find them to be very interesting in relation to the range of duties undertaken in WW1 and the obvious merriment that they provided during a very dark period.

Hi Mervyn, This is a staff that I picked up a while ago. Any ideas on the origin? Kevin

As the saying goes "and now for something completely different" - an image of the Edinburgh Special Constabulary Mechanised Section dating from 1926.

28. LEAVING CARTS, &c., IN THE STREET AT NIGHT. That if any owner or driver of any cart, timber carriage, dray, waggon, or other vehicle, shall leave or suffer the same to stand and remain in any street within the said city in the night time; the person so offending shall for such offence forfeit and pay the fine or sum of five shillings; and for a second offence, alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as such first offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of ten shillings; and for every offence being subsequent to a second offence, and alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as any prior offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of twenty shillings.

27. DRAWING TIMBER, &c., IN STREETS WITHOUT A PROPER CARRIAGE AND ATTENDANT. That if any person shall, in any street within the said city, draw any timber, stone, or other weighty atricle, without the same being placed upon, or suspended from, a wheeled carriage proper for that purpose; Or shall cause any treee, or timber, to be drawn in or upon any timber carriage, without having to guide and direct the hind wheels of such carriage, a person who shall not be under the age of eighteen years, and who shall be of sufficient strength to guide and direct the same by means of a rope, or chain, attached to the steerer thereof; Every person so respectively offending shall, for any such offence, pay the fine or sum of five shillings; and for a second offence, alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as such first offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of ten shillings; and for every offence being subsequent to a second offence, and alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as any prior offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of twenty shillings.

Bradford Bye Laws 1848...continued. 26. LEAVING CARRIAGES IN STREETS FOR AN UNNECESSARY TIME. That if any person shall leave, or suffer to remain, stand, or continue, any carriage, either with or without a horse or other cattle, in any street within the said city, for any longer time than may be necessary or reasonable for taking up or setting down passengers, or other persons, or for loading or unloading thereof; Or shall not proceed to make way or drive on, after being ordered or requested so to do by any constable of the said city; Each person so respectively offending shall, for any such offence, forfeit and pay the fine or sum of two shillings and sixpence; and for a second offence, alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as such first offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of five shillings,; and for every offence being subsequent to a second offence, and alleged and proved as such, and not committed on the same day as any prior offence, shall forfeit and pay the fine or sum of ten shillings. Provided that this Bye Law shall not extend to any hackney coach or cart standing on or at any public stand or place appointed, or to be appointed, by the Council of the said city for that purpose.

Out interest, these are few images of Ulster Special Constables. The situation in the Province obviously being markedly different from the mainland.

Hello Ed, A really nice patch. I am delighted that people are interested enough to share. Did you pick this up in the USA? I have located several nice pieces of SC memorabilia from North America and am amazed at out far these little bits and bobs travel. Kindest regards, Kevin

Another thought came to my mind. The badge below was advertised on Ebay some time ago and has continued to intrugue me. It hails from the Ulster Special Constabulary and was advertised as being made from copper. The screw thread is interesting. The Ulster Special Constabulary was, of course, heavily armed but as far as I am aware never wore the generic 'SC' lapel badge seen on the mainland. I have, however, seen a number of shooting medals from the USC containing the crossed rifles. One must also remember that special constabularies on the mainland also had fairly regular shooting competitions, especially in the 30s. I wonder if it is possible that a generic SC collar badge has been modified by the addition of the rifles for the purpose of being awarded for competition shooting. Just a thought.

Nick, Picking up on your last post. I have copied below (file too big to upload) the instructions to Special Constables from West Riding Constabulary (dated 15 June 1915). On reading your post a note registered as this documents specifically warns specials about carry any weapon other than the issue staff. It is an interesting document in it's own right and is more interesting in the light of your comments. WEST RIDING CONSTABULARY. SPECIAL CONSTABLES. INSTRUCTIONS. 1. Each man when called up for duty will receive a truncheon, an armlet, and a warrant card, the latter to be produced if required as the authority for his office. 2. The truncheon is the only weapon authorised, and no other weapon must be carried unless specifically authorised. 3. Special Constables have all the powers and privileges of ordinary Police Constables, and are entitled to the same legal protection. 4. It is impossible to specify within these limits, the numerous duties and responsibilities that devolve opon a Police Constable. It is necessary, however, to state that the particular duties required from a Special Constable are the preservation of the peace, the protection of life and property, and the prevention of crime. 5. Any person who sees a breach of the peace committed may arrest the offenders and hand them over to a Constable, Ordinary or Special, and the Constable may detain them so long as there is reason to fear any continuance of the disorder. Equally, a Constable, Ordinary or Special, witnessing a breach of the peace may arrest the offenders; and again, provided that such a condition of disorder has arisen, as to shew that a breach of the peace is threatened and imminent, a Constable may, in that case, for the purposes of preventing such a breach of the peace, arrest the persons threatening the same, and detain them until the chance of the threat being executed is past, and take then before a Magistrate in due course. 6. The most serious crimes for which a Constable has power to arrest without a warrant, are described as felonies, and the following are the felonies that are most likely to come under the cognizance of Special Constables, viz., Murder, Manslaughter, Housebreaking, Robbery, Stealing, Assault with intent to rob, Arson (that is the setting fire to premises or property), Demanding by force with intent to steal, and Felonious Assault, i.e. Assault with intent to main, wound, or do some grevious bodily harm. 7. If called upon to act, he must do so with energy, promptness and determination. He should, however, remember that the most unpleasant duties may be perfomed with with perfect courtesy, and yet with determination. He should never use his truncheon except when absolutely necessary for his own protection, or for the purpose of preventing extreme violence in case of riot or grave disorder. He should always avoid striking women and children or inoffensive persons. 8. He will be expected to give cheerful obediance to any instruction that may be given to him, and it is essential that his duties should be carried out with coolness and good temper. The public should not be aggrieved or alienated by a harsh and irritating manner. In times of trouble and disorder, hasty and inconsiderate actions may easily bring about a more serious state of things. 9. He must not quit the post to which he has been allocated without permission, and it is very necessary that he should abstain from giving information, and avoid circulating reports to anyone except members of the Police Force. 10. He should provide himself with some paper or a little note book, and a pencil, in order to write down names and addresses, and should make a note of the time of any arrest, or other special circumstances, on which he may be called upon for a report. 11. In case of injury, or death resulting from injuries received in the execution of Police duty, the Police Authority may grant pensions and allowances as in the case of the ordinary Police. 12. A member may, with the consent of the Chief Constable, resign his office, and the Chief Constable may at his pleasure determine the services of, or suspend, or dismiss, any member. 13. It should be noted the law provides, that any person after being sworn in as a Special Constable, who shall neglect or refuse to serve, or to obey such lawful orders and directions as may be given to him, shall on conviction, be fined a sum not exceeding £5 for every such neglect or refusal, as the Court shall deem meet, unless he proves that he was prevented bu sickness, or such other unavoidable accident, as shall be considered by the Court to be a sufficient excuse. A.C.QUEST, ACTING CHIEF CONSTABLE. County Chief Constable's Office, Wakefield, June 9th, 1915.

Hello Alan, I don't think that I will ever get a full set. Even if one had the money available it would mean a lot of effort to winkle them out. I am also not fully convinced that anybody has a true picture of the exact numbers produced; more's the pity. The red backed Berks badge is, unfortunately not in my collection. I have atached an image that I picked up of the method used to secure the red backing which looks original. Do you know the significance of the red cloth? For my part I will continue to post any images of rarer badges that I come across. As for buying, there appears to a very large core of common badges which keep doing the rounds with the rarer examples only popping up now and again. I keep a regular record of Ebay transactions involving SC items and the bidding patterns for some are fairly constant but at times appear to approach lunatic proportions. And, as you know, when the rarer badges do surface there is a 'feeding frenzy'. Still, bargains are still there to be found from time to time. I have also added an image of the Berks Collar which was put up on Ebay recently. The seller advised that it had been cut straight from the tunic and left intact. It shows a red backed collar badge in situ with collar numbers and the generic KC SC badge. Does this look right to you? Kind regards, Kevin

SC. Mixed bag of Steel Helmets.