David Jacobi
(1825 – after 1900)
Marshal - October 2, 1867 – June 28, 1868
(1825 – after 1900)
Marshal - October 2, 1867 – June 28, 1868
David Jacobi was born in Bavaria, Germany in 1825, immigrated to New York City around 1842, and was naturalized in San Francisco in 1855. It isn’t known when he came to Portland, but he shows up in the Portland directory in 1865 and on the 1867 and 1868 tax rolls as a lawyer and notary public. In a rare description, he is noted as being 5’4”, brown eyes and having a ruddy complexion.
Jacobi was selected to replace Marshal Hoyt after the contentious end to his final term in 1867. Jacobi’s term as Marshal was relatively uneventful and short. Friction between the city and the increasing Chinese population was growing and bawdy houses continued to be a nuisance as did the usual alcohol based crimes. He addressed a growing problem of home burglaries by catching three men in the act of breaking into a house. The first ordinance against impersonating an officer was passed in early 1868.
The June 1868 election followed the norm of the times, with around thirty special deputies hired to keep one party away from the polls (in this case the Republicans) and assist voters from the other party (the Democrats) to vote at more than one polling station. In spite of these efforts, the City Council elected James Lappeus to be the Marshal, after four ballots. Jacobi ran for Marshal again in 1869, but voters remembering the rough treatment his special officers gave them at the polls the year before, voted against his bid almost 2 to 1. In 1870 when the permanent Police force was organized, Jacobi was appointed as one of the first seven police officers, but he left the force after only one year. From 1872 to 1876 he was a Constable for the Justice of the Peace of the South Portland Precinct, collection agent and detective for the Wells Fargo Bank. During this time Jacobi and his partner O.D. Buck established a private detective agency which gained prominence after they arrested a Wells Fargo robbery suspect in Salem in 1874.
In 1877 Jacobi moved to San Francisco with his wife and seven children. He initially worked in a bakery and as a stockbroker and after 1880 became a clerk, salesman and deputy assessor. He may have died in San Mateo, California after 1900.
Jacobi was selected to replace Marshal Hoyt after the contentious end to his final term in 1867. Jacobi’s term as Marshal was relatively uneventful and short. Friction between the city and the increasing Chinese population was growing and bawdy houses continued to be a nuisance as did the usual alcohol based crimes. He addressed a growing problem of home burglaries by catching three men in the act of breaking into a house. The first ordinance against impersonating an officer was passed in early 1868.
The June 1868 election followed the norm of the times, with around thirty special deputies hired to keep one party away from the polls (in this case the Republicans) and assist voters from the other party (the Democrats) to vote at more than one polling station. In spite of these efforts, the City Council elected James Lappeus to be the Marshal, after four ballots. Jacobi ran for Marshal again in 1869, but voters remembering the rough treatment his special officers gave them at the polls the year before, voted against his bid almost 2 to 1. In 1870 when the permanent Police force was organized, Jacobi was appointed as one of the first seven police officers, but he left the force after only one year. From 1872 to 1876 he was a Constable for the Justice of the Peace of the South Portland Precinct, collection agent and detective for the Wells Fargo Bank. During this time Jacobi and his partner O.D. Buck established a private detective agency which gained prominence after they arrested a Wells Fargo robbery suspect in Salem in 1874.
In 1877 Jacobi moved to San Francisco with his wife and seven children. He initially worked in a bakery and as a stockbroker and after 1880 became a clerk, salesman and deputy assessor. He may have died in San Mateo, California after 1900.