175th Anniversary Community Celebration

2025 marked the 175th anniversary of the Peterborough Police Service. The Service was officially formed as one of the first acts of Peterborough council in 1850 with William Cummings serving as Chief Constable alongside four part-time constables serving a population of around 2,200. Since that time, the Service has grown to 162 officers and 96 civilian members serving the residents of the City of Peterborough, Village of Lakefield and Township of Cavan-Monaghan, with a combined population of approximately 100,000 people, and welcomes just over 3 million visitors, students and residents from neighbouring communities, annually.

On Tuesday, March 18, 2025, the Peterborough Police Service marked the start of those celebrations. Chief of Police Stuart Betts placed the official 175th Anniversary Crest on our marked patrol vehicles alongside our Police Service Board members.

The mission of our Service is to promote the safety of citizens and the protection of property, through an appropriate balance of law enforcement and problem solving and crime-prevention initiatives. Collaborating and engaging with our community remains at the very core of what we do each and every day as policing is not done in isolation. As Sir Robert Peel stated in 1829, “The police are the public and the public are the police.” We rely heavily on this interdependent relationship and your ongoing support with respect to sharing information, participating in crime prevention initiatives and reporting crime.

“We are honoured to be stewarding the celebration of this milestone. It is important for us to say thank you to the officers and civilians that built this Organization and have served with dedication as our community has grown. When looking back through our history, it is not surprising to see the Peterborough Police Service at the forefront of policing and public safety innovation. We pledge that the Service of the future is just as forward thinking and responsive to the needs of our policing communities. As part of that pledge, we will revisit the mission, vision and values of our Service to ensure they reflect not only today’s expectations, but also the future needs of our Organization and the Community.” - Chief Stuart Betts, Peterborough Police Service.

How the Service is celebrating:

• Development of a 175th Anniversary Crest
• Use of 175th Anniversary Crest decal on all marked patrol vehicles
• Community Celebration event was held on Saturday, May 31st, 2025
• History of the Peterborough Police Service Display at Community Celebration
• Return of the Chief For A Day contest
• Update the mission, Vision and Values for the Police Service

Learn more about the history of the Service.