By Donna Hales
New Muskogee police badges being manufactured are going to be a big morale booster, Chief Rex Eskridge said Thursday.
The badge selected is a combination of several different artist renderings. Officer Brad Holt learned having a view of the city hall, which includes the police station, displayed on the badges meant the federal government would pay $6,000 on the die cost of the badges, Eskridge said. The reason? It’s a historical building.
“The badge is a beautiful display of artistic value — more important — it’s uniquely Muskogee,” Eskridge said. “For the last 50 years, we’ve had generic badges. This is the first time we’ve had a custom-designed badge. And, it’s copyrighted.”
The badges are being manufactured by the Blackinton Badge Co., of Attleboro Falls, Mass., probably the largest custom manufacturer of badges in the United States, Eskridge said. No one will be able to order one of the badges but the police department.
There are 91 police officers in Muskogee, and the badges cost $59 each.
The badge not only has a view of the city hall in gold, it has antique police cars parked out front. It has a silver ghost shield — part of the Oklahoma State shield, complete with peace pipe and olive branch and crosses.
“We wanted our badge to be straightforward and representative of Muskogee and Oklahoma — be very attractive and speak with authority,” Eskridge said.
The present badges have been in use since the early 1980s — and prior to that Muskogee had generic badges, he said. The new badges have block lettering in black, which is traditional, the chief said.
“The more I look at it, the more I like it,” Eskridge said. “It speaks of class, and I like that. It says it’s Muskogee.”
