Special Agent Omer E. Davenport
Wabash Railway Police Department
Railroad Police
End of Watch: Wednesday, October 9, 1935

Biographical Info
Age: 39
Tour of Duty: 10 years
Badge Number: Not available

Incident Details
Cause of Death: Gunfire
Date of Incident: Wednesday, October 9, 1935
Incident Location: Illinois
Weapon Used: Handgun; .32 caliber
Suspect Info: Never identified

Special Agent Omer Davenport was shot and killed while attempting to apprehend two men who were hopping onto a passenger train in the Wabash rail yards in Macon County, Illinois. The two suspects fled after shooting him. He was taken to the Wabash Employees Hospital where he succumbed to his wounds.

The suspects were never identified or apprehended.

Special Agent Davenport was a World War I veteran, commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army Reserve at War's end. Upon his return home, he accepted rank in the Illinois National Guard, where as a Captain he commanded an Infantry Company at the Herron Massacre, and as a Major commanded a Battalion during the Sangamon County Mine War, both extended Martial Law actions. In civilian life, he was Chief of Police of Decatur, Illinois, for 4 years, and was a Wabash Railroad Police Officer for 6 years, simultaneously bearing the oath and shield of a Deputy Sheriff of Macon County. He was survived by his wife, five young children, and his mother.