Henry GARROD [????-1924]

Submitted by Admin on Tue, 12/09/2014 - 15:58
Names
Given
Henry
Family
Garrod
Sex
Male
Status
Deceased
Died
Date

Marjorie Stintzi writes:

Henry Garrod joined the Colonial Government on 4-21-1898.

He joined the Fire Brigade on 11-14-1898 until 4-16-1913.  

He joined the Hong Kong Police and was appointed Police Inspector 2nd class on 6-6-1914, Police Inspector 1st class in 1920 and retired on 1-4-1924.  

He returned to the UK and died there on May 4, 1924. 

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Front page of The Hong Kong Telegraph, 1923-03-24

INSPECTOR GARROD.

Popular Officer to Retire.

An old member of the Hongkong Police, in the person of Inspector H. Garrod, is going Home on retirement on pension shortly. Well-known as our able Traffic Officer, Mr. Garrod came out to the Colony twenty-five years ago with six others on transference from the London Metropolitan Police, and from the junior rank rose to be first-class Inspector and was later given charge of the Traffic Department at Police Headquarters. In this position be has been identified with many improvements and reforms taken from time to time to cope with the growing traffic of the Colony, being well-known as an officer of very high qualifications. With the exception of Inspector Kent, who will be his successor as Traffic Inspector, Mr. Garrod is the only member of the contingent of recruits who came out in 1898 still remaining with the Force.

At the Annual Police Inspection - SCMP 22nd November 1912 recorded the award of medals by Governor May to Garrod and Singh for conspicuous bravery on 4th July, when they had prevented the Governor's would-be assasin from hitting his mark, and then took the man into custody. (The attempt on FH May's life made on the day of his arrival as Governor.)

Henry Ching writes:

I was interested in the extract from The Hong Kong Telegraph of 24th March, 1923 under the Person post for Henry Garrod because of the reference to Police Inspector Kent who, I believe, had a son who was a half-brother of my wife’s father, William Henry Peters.
 
The extract records that  Garrod went to Hong Kong in 1898 with six others “on transferrence” from the London Metropolitan Police.  In fact, the passenger list for the Merionethshire which left  England for Hong Kong in 1898 includes the names of six men including Garrod described as “Policemen”. The names are H.G.Garrod, W.Kent, J.Lacock, D McKenzie, W.Smith and J.Quinn.   Strangely, none appears to have been appointed as a policeman on arrival in Hong Kong.  Several were appointed to the Fire Brigade – at that time, of course, the Fire Brigade in Hong Kong was a part of the Police Force, but it is not clear if this was also the position in London.
 
Garrod appears to have been appointed an Asst. Foreman (?) in the Fire Brigade, while Quinn and Smith became Asst.Engineer Drivers in the Fire Brigade.  Kent seems initially to have become Deputy Superintendent in the Registration Branch of the Post Office, while McKenzie seems to have been appointed an Inspector of Nuisances (3rd class) in the Sanitary Department. I can find no information on Lacock.
 
In July, 1912 Garrod together with a Constable Kali Singh successfully prevented a man from assassinating the newly arrived Governor, and were both awarded medals for this.  Interesting that at the time Garrod appears to have been a Foreman in the Fire Brigade.  The newspaper report describes him as “Sergeant”. Was “Foreman” the term used in the Fire Brigade for a man with three stripes? Garrod became a Police Inspector (2nd class) in June, 1914, having resigned from the Fire Brigade in April, 1913.

Interesting background to the recruitment of Henry George Garrod and others

.Garrod,Lacock and Walter Kent were all Constables in the Metropolitan Police,serving together in " V" Division.(Wandsworth)

All three resigned on the 17th February 1898 and sought pastures new.Garrod only served for a matter of months,John Lacock for  just over 2 years and Kent just short of a year.

Of McKenzie,Smith and Quinn I have as yet no information,though I have my suspicions !.

Partially realised, John Quinn served in V Division from his enlistment on 22.6.1896 until his resignation along with the others.Lacock,Quinn and Kent all received the 1897 Jubilee Medals.

A little more - Before joing the Met Lacock was an upholsterer.,Quin a labourer,Walter Kent served for six years in the Royal Marine Light Infantry and Garrod for three years in the Royal Marine Artillery. McKenzie and Smith remain elusive,possibly ex City of London Police.

 

The six new hires from London are mentioned in item 21 of the "REPORT OF THE CAPTAIN SUPERINTENDENT OF POLICE FOR THE YEAR 1898":

21.    Police Force.

Table E shows the strength, enlistments and casualties in the Police Force during 1898.

Twenty-six European recruits were engaged during the year. Five came from the Aberdeen City Police, three from the Glasgow City Police, six from the London Metropolitan Police, eight from Ireland having had no previous Police service, seven of them being approved candidates on the roster for the Royal Irish Constabulary who were enlisted by permission of the Inspector-General of the Royal Irish Constabulary, while three were obtained locally from the Royal Navy and one from the “ Empress of India” for the Water Police.

The large number of resignations of Chinese is a noticeable feature in the return, pointing to the fact that inducements to men to continue their service in the Chinese Contingent is wanting. 

I have already reported that in my opinion the pay of the Chinese Force as a whole is inadequate.