John A. Snyder
Agency patch
Deputy Sheriff

John A. Snyder

Hamilton County Sheriff's Office — Chattanooga, TN
Felonious
End of Watch May 13, 1923
Age 35
Tour of Duty 7 yrs
The Vigil Panel 45 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Deputy Sheriff John Snyder was shot and killed after responding to a disturbance at a church in Bushtown.

He was found in a ditch a block away, robbed of his personal belongings, and handcuffed with two gunshot wounds to his body. Although there were a lot of witnesses, no one seemed to know what happened.

On March 13, 1925, a man was arrested and charged with Deputy Snyder's murder. The only witness, the suspect's sister, was found to be unreliable and of bad character. The suspect was tried and acquitted.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-TN-7FF7AC4E
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

I never knew you. I am standing here anyway.
Deputy Sheriff Snyder gave the Hamilton County Sheriff's Office 7 years.
Thank you for your service to the Chattanooga community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Deputy Sheriff Snyder.

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

Agency

Type Sheriff's Office
Location Chattanooga, Hamilton County, TN
Platform Identity hcso.hamilton.tn.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch May 13, 1923
Tour of Duty 7 yrs
Age 35
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Felonious

Deputy Sheriff John A. Snyder is one of 1 officers killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty across the full record of this memorial — 0% of all 97,772 officers honored here.

In TN, 498 of 769 officers were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 64.8% of this state's fallen. That is 64.8 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, 12 of 16 officers on record were killed feloniously — deliberately targeted and murdered in the line of duty — 75% of this agency's fallen.

Hamilton County Sheriff's Office
12
of 16 officers
75% Felonious
TN — Statewide
498
of 769 officers
64.8% Felonious
Nationwide
1
of 97,772 officers
0% Felonious

National Cause Distribution

How Felonious compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John A. Snyder's cause is highlighted.

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

How John A. Snyder Compares

Age at Death
35
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 39.0 years
Years of Service
7
This officer
Avg for Felonious: 8.4 years

When Felonious Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Felonious deaths across the full memorial record. John A. Snyder is highlighted in May.

Jan
1,392
Feb
1,295
Mar
1,373
Apr
1,516
May
1,504
Jun
1,442
Jul
1,587
Aug
1,517
Sep
1,491
Oct
1,371
Nov
1,447
Dec
1,624

Weapons Used Against Officers

Most common weapons in felonious officer deaths.

Handgun
3,684
Gun
3,592
Gun; Unknown type
1,492
Shotgun
1,109
Rifle
935
Officer's handgun
909