Charles Smith
Agency patch
Patrolman

Charles Smith

Ardmore Police Department — Ardmore, OK
Accident
End of Watch September 27, 1915
Age 35
The Vigil Panel 30 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Patrolman Smith was killed when a Santa Fe railroad car carrying 250 barrels of gasoline exploded at the Ardmore passenger terminal. Dozens of other bystanders were killed as a result of the explosion.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-OK-039C46F2
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
April 2, 2026
Last updated
July 23, 2026

Honored here by 1 sentinel - 1 tribute.

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Tributes

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Patrolman Smith served with the Ardmore Police Department.
Thank you for your service to the Ardmore community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Smith.

— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993

Agency

Location Ardmore, OK
Platform Identity apd.carter.ok.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch September 27, 1915
Age 35
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Patrolman Charles Smith is one of 10,088 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 31% of all 32,508 officers honored here.

In OK, 135 of 582 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 23.2% of this state's fallen. That is 7.8 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.

At Ardmore Police Department, 2 of 7 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 28.6% of this agency's fallen.

Ardmore Police Department
2
of 7 officers
28.6% Accident
OK — Statewide
135
of 582 officers
23.2% Accident
Nationwide
10,088
of 32,508 officers
31% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Charles Smith's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Charles Smith Compares

Age at End of Watch
35
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Charles Smith is highlighted in Sep.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897