Robert C. Goodrich
Agency patch
Patrolman

Robert C. Goodrich

Wooster Police Department — Wooster, OH
Accident
End of Watch July 5, 1969
Age 56
Tour of Duty 23 yrs
The Vigil Panel 105 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Patrolman Robert Goodrich and Sergeant Paul Knisely drowned in Little Apple Creek during a rescue mission at 5 am. The area had received ten inches of rain in less than 13 hours. Four policemen were rescuing people trapped by high waters in their homes when their boat capsized. Two policemen were rescued; one of the police officers was Patrolman Goodrich's son. Patrolman Goodrich had served with the Wooster Police Department for 23 years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife, son, two grandchildren, and sister.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-OH-5FC87909
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

23 years. You could have gone home.
Patrolman Goodrich gave the Wooster Police Department 23 years. Still answering calls at the end.
Thank you for your service to the Wooster community. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, Patrolman Goodrich.

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

Agency

Type Police Department
Location Wooster, Wayne County, OH
Platform Identity wpd.wayne.oh.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 5, 1969
Tour of Duty 23 yrs
Age 56
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Patrolman Robert C. Goodrich 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 OH, 318 of 991 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 32.1% of this state's fallen. That is 32.1 percentage points above the national rate of 0%.

At Wooster Police Department, 2 of 3 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 66.7% of this agency's fallen.

Wooster Police Department
2
of 3 officers
66.7% Accident
OH — Statewide
318
of 991 officers
32.1% 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. Robert C. Goodrich's cause is highlighted.

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

How Robert C. Goodrich Compares

Age at Death
56
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
23
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Robert C. Goodrich is highlighted in Jul.

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

Others Who Wore This Badge

2 officers from Wooster Police Department are honored on badge.nw.