Research Source

Nothing explains our agency greater than the historic object. As part of the celebration of our 225th anniversary, the U.S. Marshals featured several virtual historical artifacts to educate both internal and external audiences. We “opened the vault” to better define our many missions throughout the long trail of our storied history. The age of the object varied, as will as its story.

U.S. Marshals and their deputies have excelled for over 200 years, but a common object over time is the identifying instrument and documentation presented while conducting agency business. A badge denoted official operational capacity and the special merit that characterized our personnel.

There have been a wide range of designs of badges that were worn by U.S. Marshals and their deputies in the past two hundred years. The following are provided as a sample of the different styles that have been used.

The Chief Deputy United States Marshal badge was not issued until January 1951. The control and credential warning are on the back of the badge. Badges were of gold color (some are marked 1/10 of 10KT. on the back). Made by the Robins Company (Robins CO. was bought by V. H. Blackinton CO.) Badges were bought by the U.S. Department of Justice.

For the commemoration of the Bicentennial of the Marshals Service, a larger-than-life bronze sculpture, titled "Frontier Marshal" was donated to the Marshals Service by John Bianchi, a member of the original U.S. Marshals foundation Board of Directors and founder of Bianchi International, a holster and sporting equipment manufacturer.

In the mid 1990's the U.S. Marshals Service produced a series of "sports cards" that depicted and commemorated notable Marshals and Deputy Marshals that served their country in various historical periods of the Marshals Service existence. The cards were designed by Big League Cards.

Each year, the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) averages 500-700 requests for historical or genealogical information. Please note that there is no complete tally of Deputy U.S. Marshals. While we have approximately 40,000 names and references to personnel, there are names continually added to our official count.

The official seal of the U.S. Marshals forms the patch for the Nation’s oldest Federal law enforcement agency. The seal is symbolic of the rich heritage and devotion to duty of the men and women of the U.S. Marshals Service. In October 1966, U.S. Marshal Robert Morey of Massachusetts designed the USMS seal.

When retired Chief Deputy Patrick J. Pyne of the District of Rhode Island passed away in 1983 at the age of 93, he left behind a personal scrapbook which is a treasure trove of Marshals Service history and an insight into the man he was.

The follow photos reflect an exhibit that was created by an Arkansas student, Ashton Peters, who put the exhibit together in honor of the U.S. Marshals Service. It has won honors and is being featured at the state level.
Ashton Peters is a 9th Grade student at Alma High School.

The oldest federal law enforcement agency in the United States is truly the Marshals Service. The agency was formed by the Judiciary Act of September 24, 1789. The act specifically determined that law enforcement was to be the U.S. Marshals' primary function. Therefore it appropriately defined marshals as law enforcement officers.