Incident
Officer Henderson was killed when he was struck and run over by a bus that had just made a left on Wayne Avenue from Lincoln Drive. He was returning home after finishing a four-hour shift of guard duty at the Walnut Line Bridge.
He was a U.S Army veteran of WWI and had served with the Philadelphia Police Department for 23 years.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-F167D94A- 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 served 1985 to 1993. You served too, before the badge - different uniform, same idea. You go where you are sent and you do not get to pick the call.
Policeman Henderson gave the Philadelphia Police Department 23 years.
Thank you for your service to the Philadelphia community. Thank you for your service before it. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
William J. Henderson served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Policeman William J. Henderson 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. William J. Henderson's cause is highlighted.
How William J. Henderson Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. William J. Henderson is highlighted in Dec.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
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