John William Holt
Agency patch
Merchant Policeman

John William Holt

Cynthiana Police Department — Cynthiana, KY
Accident
End of Watch November 23, 1937
Age 71
Tour of Duty 20 yrs
The Vigil Panel 74 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Merchant Policeman John Holt was struck and killed by a Louisville and Nashville Railroad train at the Pike Street railroad crossing while walking his beat at about 5:00 am.

He was attempting to cross the tracks as the train approached but he slipped and fell in its path.

Policeman Holt had served with the Cynthiana Police Department for 20 years and had previously served as a Harrison County constable.

Survivors

He is survived by his wife, brother, two half-brothers, and three half-sisters.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-KY-E780AB8E
Stewardship
Maintained by NeuraWeb Global Inc.
Added to badge.nw
August 2, 2026
Last updated
August 2, 2026

Honored here by 1 tribute.

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Tributes

20 years. You could have gone home.
Merchant Policeman Holt gave the Cynthiana Police Department 20 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Cynthiana community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Merchant Policeman Holt.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Cynthiana, Harrison County, KY
Platform Identity cpd.harrison.ky.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch November 23, 1937
Tour of Duty 20 yrs
Age 71
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Merchant Policeman John William Holt is one of 1 officers lost to accidents in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In KY, 161 of 983 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 16.4% of this state's fallen. That is 16.4 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Cynthiana Police Department, 1 of 4 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 25% of this agency's fallen.

Cynthiana Police Department
1
of 4 officers
25% Accident
KY — Statewide
161
of 983 officers
16.4% Accident
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John William Holt's cause is highlighted.

Felonious
1 (0%)
Accident
1 (0%)
Illness
1 (0%)
Cardiac
1 (0%)
Undetermined
1 (0%)
Suicide
1 (0%)

How John William Holt Compares

Age at Death
71
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
20
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. John William Holt is highlighted in Nov.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
708
May
848
Jun
797
Jul
899
Aug
938
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Incident Location