Since its founding in 1953, the Waterford Police Department has issued 3 official badge styles. This page documents the different styles of badges that have been issued over the years, along with a brief history of each.
The numbers on the badge do not mean what most people think. When the department was founded, the badges were purchased in matching sets, with 2 breast badges and 1 hat badge comprising a full set. The original badges, series 1, were numbered sequentially. They were issued to officers by seniority, with badge number 1 going to the most senior patrolman. This system does not reflect the employee's actual "badge number" as is commonly believed.
As officers were retired or promoted, badges were exchanged among employees to reflect their current position in seniority. This practice continued with series 2 and 3 badges until 1999, when it was finally abandoned. In 2000, the department began to issue badge sets to newly hired officers with their actual badge number on it. The rank was officially changed from Patrolman, to Patrol Officer (briefly) to Police Officer.
Current issue badges, which are series 3, are mixed between the old seniority number system and the newer actual badge number system. In addition, current series 3 badges carry "patrolman," "patrol officer," and "police officer" designations.