The memorial is located on the north end of Trinity Park along West 7th Street. It occupies approximately five acres of park. » Get Directions
Hours of Operation
5:00am - 11:30pm
The displays and paths are always
illuminated.
By Mail
3801 Hulen Suite 101
Fort Worth, Texas 76107
By Phone
817-870-2171
Richard D. "Dick" Howell
Age:
Unknown
Length of Service:
25 Years
Location of Incident:
12th at Lake Street
Date of Injury:
April 11, 1908
Date of Death:
September 30, 1927
Burial:
Mount Olivet Cemetery
Summary:
Elected Dec. 2, 1902, was re-elected two more times and held the position until 1906. In 1906, Howell took the position of "Special Agent" with the Fort Worth and Denver Railroad. As a railroad agent, Howell would have been commissioned as a Special Officer from the North Fort Worth Police Department. Later appellate records indicate at the time of his injury, Howell was a Policeman of North Fort Worth.
On April 11, 1908, Howell was in the offices of the North Fort Worth Police Department and was speaking with O.R. Montgomery, North Fort Worth City Marshal and Chief of Police. While there, reports of a shooting incident nearby started to come in. Chief Montgomery and Officer Howell responded to the scene and confronted the suspect, Ike Knight. During the course of trying to arrest Knight, Officer Howell began trying to disarm Knight. During the course of the fight, Knight shot Officer Howell in the thigh, giving him a terrible leg wound and shattering the bone. Knight then fired the shotgun at Chief Montgomery, striking him in the midsection and disabling him. Nearby citizens then intervened and Knight was taken into custody without further incident.
Both Montgomery and Howell were taken to a local hospital. Montgomery quickly recovered from his injuries, but Officer Howell's leg had to be amputated. Immediately after the amputation, Howell suffered the first of a series of strokes. The loss of his leg also left him unable to return to work with the railroad. When Officer Howell had sufficiently recovered, Chief Montgomery appointed him to the position of Night Sergeant at the North Fort Worth Station. Officer Howell continued in this position after North Fort Worth was annexed by the City of Fort Worth in 1910.
Officer Howell continued to have health problems relating to the amputation and stroke and began missing a great deal of work. The mayor of Fort Worth wrote a letter to the City Commissioners recommending that Howell also receive full pay, regardless of absence due to illness.
Officer Howell eventually had three more strokes directly relating to the amputation of his leg. The last stroke was the most severe, causing paralysis. He died on September 30, 1927 shortly after having the fourth stroke.
These facts are documented by the following sources:
Ike S. Knight v. The State
No 474
Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas
55 Tex. Crim. 243; 116 S.W. 56, 1909 Tex. Crim. App.
Fort Worth Record
Sunday, April 12, 1908
Fort Worth Star-Telegram – Morning Edition – Oct. 1, 1927
Correspondence from Mayor W.D. Davis dated Oct. 4, 1911.
A 20th Century History and Biographical Record of North and West Texas by B.B. Paddock.
Lewis Publishing - Chicago and New York - 1906, Page 246
