Nassau County Police Department Patrolman John A. Hahn, who died in the line of duty in 1925, remembered 100 years later

Paul Smith grew up hearing stories of his great-uncle, Patrolman John A. Hahn, who was killed while serving Nassau County’s first police department in 1925.

It wasn’t until he tracked his family’s ancestry and got a phone call from Nassau County police in January that he learned Hahn's passing was the department’s first line of duty death.

Hahn, 38, was part of the initial 55-man department when he was killed while on duty after crashing his motorcycle Sept. 24, 1925, at the corner of Washington and Stewart avenues in Garden City.

On Wednesday, the family traveled from Western New York and from across Long Island to dedicate a plaque at that intersection to commemorate Hahn’s death 100 years later. The plaque was placed in the center median during a ceremony honoring Hahn with a color guard and pipe and drums band.

"Dad told us [Hahn] was killed shortly after joining the force, but we didn’t realize he was the first," Smith, 77, said Wednesday after driving eight hours to attend the ceremony from Hilton, Monroe County. "It’s just amazing how Nassau County is making a point to never forget these patrolmen and officers, and that they continue to honor them and give them the respect they should have."

Hahn had been on the job for about five months and was married with no children. He was riding his motorcycle on Washington Avenue through what was then mostly farm country. He lost control when another vehicle, heading east on Stewart, came from behind a bush and nearly struck his bike, Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.

Hahn had to jump off his bike in order to not strike the vehicle at the intersection and died from his injuries, Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman said.

"The fact that it happened 100 years ago is of no moment to us here in Nassau County," Blakeman said. "We honor their memory. We don't forget and we make a vow. We take pride in making sure that we never forget."

Ryder said the department was reviewing its memorials for the 50 line-of-duty deaths for the department’s centennial. Officials discovered that 30 of those deaths were not documented in any memorials outside the department’s police headquarters in Mineola.

Ryder said there will be 29 more dedications around Nassau County to remember other officers who died in the line of duty. 

Nassau police also plan to replace Hahn's tombstone after visiting his grave and finding it blank, Ryder said.

"That will never happen again, not on this county executive’s watch and not on mine." Ryder said. "There's a family that is always left behind. There are members of our department that honor and respect those fallen. So that's why we're here today."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.