There is a policeman who stands watch over Pittsburgh’s North Shore and keeps a protective eye toward the city’s skyline 24 hours a day. It’s a bronze statue of a policeman and the inscription at the bottom reads “Ever Watchful.” The bronze policeman statue is part of the Law Enforcement Officers Memorial of Allegheny County. The memorial was designed to honor all Law Enforcement Officers who have died in the line of duty as well as all members of the law enforcement community both living and dead.
It was originally dedicated in September 1996 where it stood in a grove between the former Three Rivers Stadium and the Carnegie Science Center. The memorial was moved due to the construction of Pittsburgh’s new sports stadiums. The Law Enforcement Officers Memorial of Allegheny County now resides on Art Rooney Boulevard and North Shore Drive about 500 feet from were it formerly stood.
Today the memorial has two granite benches and a 48-inch-high, 7-foot-long black granite wall with the names of fallen officers inscribed on it. The first officer listed on the granite wall is John Benjamin Evans. During a robbery on Water Street in Pittsburgh in 1885 he was shot with his own gun. The memorial includes the names of 108 law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty.
There is also an 18-inch-high, 35-foot-long wall that has the memorial’s name illuminated on the river side. Plaques on the memorial side include names of local Police Officers who have died in the line of duty and also officers from other jurisdictions.
Another part of the memorial is an old call box painted red and blue. At the base is a granite block with the words “Final Call” inscribed on it.
At the memorial are flagpoles flying the flags of the United States as well as two additional flagpoles with flags from the county of Allegheny and the State of Pennsylvania.
During the evening hours a white light illuminates the statue. Another light illuminates the memorial with a blue light which symbolizes the law enforcement profession.
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