Denver Earlington Tabor

Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources — Frankfort, KY

Accident Veteran

End of Watch July 20, 1973

Age 35

Tour of Duty 8 yrs

The Vigil Panel 112 ›

Gender Male

Incident Service The Sacrifice Department 8

Incident

Conservation Officer Denver Tabor drowned while attempting to rescue a boy who had fallen overboard from a boat in the Ohio River near Dam 50. Officer Tabor and another conservation officer had taken the other officer's grandson on their boat. The boy was thrown overboard when the boat struck a floating stump. Officer Tabor dove into the water and was bringing the boy back to the boat when both got caught in an eddy and were dragged below the surface. Both bodies were recovered the following day. Officer Tabor was a United States Marine Corps veteran and had served with the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources for eight years.

Survivors

He was survived by his wife, daughter, son, mother, and two siblings.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier: BO-US-KY-85E4E7D6
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.
Conservation Officer Tabor gave the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources 8 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.

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

Agency

Department Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources

Location Frankfort, KY

Platform Identity kdfwrcons.fed.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch July 20, 1973

Tour of Duty 8 yrs

Age 35

Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Military Service

Denver Earlington Tabor served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.

Conservation Officer Denver Earlington Tabor 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 KY, 161 of 983 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 16.4% of this state's fallen. That is 14.6 percentage points below the national rate of 31%.

At Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, 4 of 9 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 44.4% of this agency's fallen.

Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources

of 9 officers

44.4% Accident

KY — Statewide

161

of 983 officers

16.4% Accident

Nationwide

10,088

of 32,508 officers

31% Accident