Toledo Police Department Arrest Blotters

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: MSS-350

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The collection is divided into two record types: indexes, which list the names of those arrested and their arrest numbers, and blotters, the daily arrest record. It is arranged chronologically, first based on male prisoners and then based on female prisoners, as there were separate jails for each. Exceptions to the chronological arrangment include boxes that contain multiple indexes according to size. Similarly, arrest blotters that required special care due to their poor condition may not be in chronological order with the other blotters. See the inventory to find the specific year of interest.

Students studying criminology, sociology or Toledo History may be interested in this collection. This collection contains blotters that include information on people who have been jailed or picked up by the Toledo Police throughout Toledo’s history. These blotters include the name of those arrested, their profession, nationality, race, date of arrest, offense, who arrested them, etc. Some indexes and blotters are in fragile condition and should be handled with care.

Dates

April 1872-December 15, 1971

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Materials may be accessed by request at the Ward M. Canaday Center for Special Collections on the fifth floor of the William S. Carlson Library on the main campus of the University of Toledo. Materials do not circulate.

Conditions Governing Use

In most cases, the Canaday Center does not own the copyright and literary rights to items in its collections; it is the responsibility of the researcher to adhere to U.S. Copyright and Fair Use laws, including seeking permission from the copyright holder and payment of any royalty fees, in the reproduction and use of archival materials. Providing copies or scans does not constitute a license to publish or reproduce images in print or electronic form.

Biographical / Historical

The Toledo Police Arrest Blotter collection was originally housed in the Safety Building downtown, with some materials coming from Bowling Green State University's Center for Archival Collections. Transfer of the collection to the Canaday Center was made possible by the assistance of the Toledo Police Museum.

The Toledo Police Department was officially created on April 27, 1867. Initially, the Toledo Police Department’s jail was located at 58 Monroe Street, but due to its poor location and limited space it was moved to Superior Street. A fire engine house was converted into a women’s jail at 612 Lagrange Street in 1892. Prisoners were moved to a newly built jail, which was called the Safety Building, located on 525 N. Erie Street on May 16, 1926. Men were housed on the third-floor while women were housed on the fourth-floor. When a new Lucas County Jail was built, the women’s section of the Safety Building was closed on June 17, 1977. While the new Lucas County Jail was being built, the men’s section of the Safety Building would remain operational until the new jail was finished.

Police recorded arrests in a daily record, called blotters. This collection includes blotters from April 1, 1872 to December 15, 1971. There are no known blotters before April 1, 1972 or between 1972 and 1977.

https://www.toledopolicemuseum.com/police-blotters

Extent

146.25 Linear Feet : - Materials in the poorest condition were housed in custom boxes. Note that some boxes include multiple volumes. Due to their fragile condition, including crumbling paper, red rot, and damaged spines, please handle with care.

196 Volumes : - Materials in good to very good condition are unboxed, but protected with a polyester jacket. The dimensions of the unboxed volumes range from 18 inches to 25 inches. Volumes on average weigh about 20 pounds but can vary.