Roll of Honor
Incident
Police Officer James Kelly was struck and killed by a Pennsylvania Railroad train at the Almhouse Crossing, near South Street.
He and another officer were in the area as a result of citizen complaints about a large group of boys who would play baseball and harass citizens on Sundays. As he and the other officer crossed the tracks to speak to the boys he was struck by Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad engine.
Officer Kelly had served with the Philadelphia Police Department for 34 years and was assigned to the 21st District. He was scheduled to retire in one month.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife and several adult children.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-FBBD23F2- 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
134 years is a long time for a name to go unread. Not today.
Police Officer Kelly gave the Philadelphia Police Department 34 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphia community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Police Officer James H. Kelly 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 PA, 417 of 1,261 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 33.1% of this state's fallen. That is 2.1 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.
At Philadelphia Police Department, 110 of 378 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 29.1% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. James H. Kelly's cause is highlighted.
How James H. Kelly Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. James H. Kelly is highlighted in May.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
377 officers from Philadelphia Police Department are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
