Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1900-12-22
CAPT. JOHN WHEELER.

all the rest of the city put together. ac-
cordn- to the statements of many oh |
servant policemen. and yet the real
criminal section is a comparatively |
small part of the whole district. In II |
compilation of crime records made ut
police headquarters in December. 1897.
running back for four years. 1t was
estimated that out of the four hundred
murders that had occurred in the city
during that time. at least ,seventy.iivc
of them came from the Maxwell dis
trict. This was almost u fifth of the
total number. In January. 1899. Il
week after having read the story of the
capture of the gang of highway rob
hcrS who had murdered Officer Edward
Wallner. ON Jan. >, In speaking of
Captain John Wheeler, Chief of Police
Ripley said: "Ilc is the greatest police
man Chicago has ever produced" In
spcctor ShcA's tribute ut this time was
as follows: "Joln Wheeler has done
better work aud effected more import.
ant captures than any other command
ing officer in America. ana bar none"
worth as IN officer have not in the Least
turned the head of the steady. hard
working Captain in command ut the
Maxwell Street Police station. Captain
John Wheeler has been Il member of
the Chicago police force II little over
twenty years, and has worked his way
up the ladder by faithful attention to
a. I,,,,. TT. 4 a.
political pull. 1t Is with pride that hr
points to the fact that neither has he
nor any of his friends for him ever
asked for promotion. Such advances
rs hc has made In the department have
come to him unsolicited, and In several
instances have been urged and even
forced upon him. John Wheeler was
born in Wheaton. ILL.,. March y. 1850.
When but few months old his par.
cnlS removed to Turner Junction. now
| West Chicago. and six years later to
| Rochelle. ILL.,, where he spent his hoy.
| hood days and received his education.
| He was apparently born for u police
| man. for when he was but Is years old
| u. w. Baxter. then Mayor of Rochelle,
appointed him City Marshal. which po.
| sition hc held for eight years. and
| Is remembered in the little Ogle County
| city rs the best Marshal the city ever
had. His first important police work
was done while City Marshal nj
| Rochelle. During that time a merchant
| at Cheney u few miles from Rochelle.
was brutally murdered and robbed by
| u tramp. william Mitchell. who made
| his escape. The whole countryside was
aroused over the murder. and posses
| of men turned out to hunt the muir
| derer. Wheeler took n hand In the
| hunt. and succeeded I'm ai'rcsting the
man. who pleaded guilty to the crime,
and il now serving u life sentence In
| the penitcntlary ut Joliet. At the age
| OF - Wheeler came to Chicago. ON
Oct. -. 1878. Chief of Police Srnvey.
| under Mayor Heath. appointed him Il
patrolman on the Chicago police force.
and assigned him To duty ut the old
| Union Street Station Union and Madi.
son streets. He moved To the Dcs-
| PLANES Street Station in May 1889. In
| June, 1887. he was made u patrol SER
geant ana was sent to the West North
Avenue Station. where he remained
until 1889, when Frederick Marsh was
made Chief of Police. Marsh was an
Oglc County man and knew Wheelcrs
worth, and at once advanced him to
the rank Of lieutenant and sent him
back to the Desplaines Street Station.
In June. 1894. Chief BadenOch transfer
red him to the Maxwell Street Station,
and one year later promoted him to the
rank of Captain and placed him In COM
mand of the Maxwell street district.
Captain Wheeler has handled many i'm.
pOrtant cases. but II was his hunt for
and the killing of the negro desperate,
"Bilr' Allen, that gave him the great
est prominence. In May, 1883, he N.
rested Jim Dacey, an Eighteenth Ward
politician. for the murder of Aid. MI
chael Gaynor. Dacey was tried. con-
victed and hanged. In 1885. Wheeler
arrested Jack McIain for stabbing to
death Samuel Booth In II basement at
III West Lake street. McIain was
found In Halsted street with the open
knife In his hand ana attempted to kill
Wheeler hut was Overpowercd after u
desperate fight. He became insane
during his trial, but was sent to prison,
where he died. Later, by clever piece
of detective work, he arrested Jack
ToOmey for the murder of II butcher
during quarrel NJ Madison ana Peoria
streets. In 1887 Jack Brennan shot
and killed his wife Minnie ut Sangamon
and Lake streets. \ short time after
ward Wheeler arrested Brennan, who
denied the killing. Wheeler finally
forced confession from him ana made
him tell where he had hidden the re-
volver. Brennan Is now serving II life
sentence in the Joliet pepitentlary for
murder. Among his more recent cases
Of note is the Chris Merry case, the
Robert l.. Gudgeon murder the MUIR
| der of Louis ROsenbloOm, the Jewish
rabbi; the arrest of Lambert wilt, the
bank cashier, who embcZZled $4,000
from the National Bank of JungbanZ-
lau, Bohemia, and fled TO this country,
was not the least of Captain Wheelers
many victories. One of the last eases
to bring Captain Wheeler prominently
before the public was the arrest of the
murderers of Officer Edward Wnllner,
after having held up and robbed B0ir-
mann's store, 2lst and Robey streets,
on the night of jan 3, 1899. The story
- ~ Al T..