Orval Storey was one of the original eighty Department of Highways officers who joined the OPP in 1930. He was born in the Napanee area in 1904. He enjoyed six years of service with the provincial police, serving at Richmond Hill and Brampton, followed by Cooksville and finally Owen Sound in 1931.

On July 25, 1936 at 9:30 p.m., about five miles south of Owen Sound while riding on Highway 10, Officer Storey was following a northbound car driven by a local man when suddenly a vehicle from Windsor traveling in the opposite direction sideswiped the car ahead of the cycle. The errant car then crossed the highway and struck the police motorcycle head-on.

The driver who took his life was charged with manslaughter, but was acquitted.

PC Storey was survived by his wife and thirty month old daughter.

Mike, as he liked to be called, was employed with the Department of Highways previous to joining the OPP in 1930 as a member with the new motorcycle patrol. Little was known of him except that he served the province in Cooksville, London And Kitchener and the events that led to his death.

On March 11, 1934, PC Lemon stopped a vehicle for a routine traffic stop and noticed a light problem on the rear of the vehicle. The officer proceeded to the rear of the vehicle and was hit by an Oldsmobile that did not stop, but quickly sped away. PC Lemon had been thrown seventy-five feet and died instantly. 

Within two hours of the accident a suspect was arrested and later charged with manslaughter.

The court, however, felt the crown had failed to show gross negligence, willful or wanton conduct on behalf the suspect and the case was dismissed. He later had to pay a fine under the Highway Traffic Act for failing to remain at the scene of the accident.

Charles Hefferon packed a lot of living in his fifty-five years. He was in public and national service and as a sportsman he reached the pinnacle of his chosen endeavour.

Charles was born in 1877, Bishop’s Green, England. Charles was still quite young when he was immigrated to Canada and settled down in Brandon, Manitoba.

Prior to his contribution to public service, Charles also served for several years in the national service and answered Britain’s call to arms in the Boer War. After that war Charles continued to live in South Africa. He was there ten years before moving on to Canada. He served again in the Great War and signed on with the Royal Canadian Dragoons. 

Upon his return to Canada, Charles was acting chief of police in Dunnville before transferring to the Ontario Provincial Police. He worked on special assignments in Hamilton and then moved to motorcycle patrol with the Department of Highways in Brantford, Blenheim and in 1930 he arrived in Brampton just as the unit became part of the OPP. 

In addition to military and police services, Charles was also an accomplished athlete. He ran middle and long distance and the British Empire deemed him to be one of the greats in marathon competition. Some of his many highlights as an athlete were his solid track reputation in South Africa where he won the one-mile and four-mile championships. In England he won the one-mile world professional championship and the English four-mile event and came in second in the British marathon. The biggest highlight of his athletic career was when he came in second place (silver medal) in the 1908 Olympiad in London.

Charles Hefferon was thought to have an excellent way of approaching the public so as to enforce the law without creating undue hardship on society. He had a great way of dealing with people.

On Thursday May 12, 1932, Charles Hefferon passed away at the age of fifty-five in a traffic accident. He tried to proceed through an intersection, sounded his siren but was hit by a motorist who later claimed he did not see the officer approaching. Charles lived until the next day but as a result of his injuries he never regained consciousness.

In 1928, John Montgomery was very happy with his career as a motorcycle patrol officer. He spent most of his time patrolling along the St. Lawrence River while he was working out of Morrisburg as a member of the Department of Highways Motorcycle Patrol. This enjoyment of life and career were put to the test in 1928 when he broke his jaw and both legs while on-duty. 

Although PC Montgomery had a long period of recovery, he did not request a change for an alternate line of work. He went right back to highway patrolling as soon as the doctor gave him authorization to do so.

In March of 1930, the OPP took over the duty of patrolling the highways and John was one of the eighty people that became members. 

PC Montgomery was deployed out of Westboro, now known as Nepean, upon joining the OPP. He spent most of his career in Eastern Ontario. Montgomery only served for 16 short months once he was hired by the OPP. He was the fatality of a head on collision while he was following another vehicle. 

On Friday July 31, 1931, John Montgomery passed away at the age of thirty-two. He was survived by his wife and their young son.

Toronto Star article: 

OFFICER CRASH VICTIM WILL BE BURIED HERE 

Fred Bingley Is Sixth Member of Highway Police, Killed in Two Years 

Special to The Star by Staff Reporter 

Hagersville, Oct. 4 – The late Fred Bingley, who was killed Thursday night near Caledonia while on duty as a provincial highway traffic officer, will be buried in Toronto on Monday afternoon from the home of his brother, Walter Bingley, 298 Wychwood Ave. 

Bingley was huried from his motorcycle when his sidecar failed to right itself after turning a curve on the highway. He suffered a fractured skull, and did not regain consciousness. He is the sixth Ontario highway officer in the last two years and will be accorded full police honors by his late associates, twenty of whom will escort the funeral cortege on their motorcycles. 

“Bad luck followed Fred, it seems” his widow told The Star. “It is his third accident in less than two years.  Christmas Eve, 1927 he was in Victoria hospital, London, with a broken collarbone. Last December he broke the leg which was injured so terribly last night. 

“He was happier yesterday than he had been for days and he telephoned me a short time before the accident that he was on his way home.” 

Four children survive Bingley – Fred, Eleanor, Edith and Edward.

Thomas Kehoe was a highly respected constable with the Bancroft Police. On the night of July 12, 1929, while on foot patrol, Constable Kehoe was crossing a street in the Village when he was struck by a vehicle. He suffered a fractured skull and died in hospital the next day.

Three days later, three local boys turned themselves into police. They had been drinking and driving and reported that they knew nothing of the accident until they heard reports of the officer being run down.

Born in Devonshire, England in 1896, Norman served with the British Expeditionary Forces during World War I and earned the Military Medal and the 1914-15 Star. He came to Canada in 1920 and served with the Oshawa Police and was a Detective with the Canadian National Railway, prior to his appointment to the Ontario Provincial Police on November 29, 1922. 

He started at the Belleville Detachment and was transferred to the Peterborough Detachment in 1924. 

Commissioner General Williams chose Norman as one of the two officers to act as special escorts to the Prince of Wales during the official opening of the new International Peace Bridge on August 7, 1927 between Canada and the United States.

On May 3, 1928, Norman and the local Provincial Officer under the Ontario Temperance Act were called to the downtown Montgomery House Hotel, about a man threatening people with a gun. When the officers confronted the suspect he ran up a flight of stairs to his room. As the officers followed up the stairs the suspect emerged from his room pulled his concealed handgun shooting and killing Norman and wounding the Provincial Officer who were both attempting to flee down the staircase. Norman was the third O.P.P. officer killed in the line of duty. 

At the time of his death, Norman was survived by his wife Muriel and their two daughters, Norma age 3, and Connie age 3 months.

Hiram O’Callaghan was appointed to the Department of Highways as a Provincial Traffic Officer in May 1927, working on the highways of eastern Ontario from Kemptville. 

On the afternoon of January 12, 1928 Cst. O’Callaghan was patrolling the highway between Ottawa and Kemptville near Watterson’s Corners, when his motorcycle was involved in a head on collision with a delivery truck. Hiram died instantly from his injuries. 

Hiram was forty-three (43) years of age, married with six (6) children at the time of his death.

When WWI broke out Hiram served with the 156th Battalion serving in France, where he was seriously wounded and gassed. 

In 1930 all Provincial Traffic Officers were amalgamated into the OPP.

Constable McKay was patrolling on his motorcycle and had turned around to pursue a speeder. On the last curve on Holland Landing Hill, he lost contact of his motorcycle and was thrown, striking his head on the pavement. He was killed instantly.

Constable St. Charles was executing a tax distress warrant and was shot by the person to whom he was serving the warrant. He died a month later of his injuries.

Constable St. Charles had 25 years service at the time of his death.