Located in New York City, New York, the second officially established police department in the United States was the New York Police Department. This police department, like all of the police departments in the United States to some extent, was heavily influenced by the London Metropolitan Police.  It was established in 1844, and it was organized similarly to the military in its command structure like the London Metropolitan Police. The uniforms of the New York Police Department were also similar to London’s police force, as they were also blue, military style, and had badges on them for identification. The uniforms established a sense of authority, and this impacted the presence and perception of the police department by the public. The blue color of the uniforms was largely based on the London Metropolitan Police, and the color and uniform style was similar to that of the military at the time. The police department has continued to grow since its original establishment and with the growth in the population of the largest city in the United States. Today, the New York Police Department is the largest police department in the United States, and it is one of the most widely recognized police departments in the world. The department consists of around 36,000 officers and around 19,000 civilian employees, and it is nearly three times the size of the Chicago Police Department, the second largest police department in the United States.

References:

Kelling, G., & Brodeur, J. (2020, September 01). Early police in the United States. Retrieved October 12, 2020, from https://www.britannica.com/topic/police/Early-police-in-the-United-States

Kershner, E. (2020, August 03). The Largest Police Departments In The US. Retrieved October 12, 2020, from https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/the-largest-police-departments-in-the-us.html