Roll of Honor
Incident
Patrolman John Gillespie succumbed to injuries sustained five years earlier when he was struck by a vehicle while directing traffic at the intersection of Pioneer Avenue and West Liberty Avenue.
He was transported to a local hospital where he remained for almost four years, being released on September 20th, 1953, after undergoing 16 different surgeries. He returned home where his conditioned continued to worsen. He suffered a fatal heart attack as result of his injuries on January 25th, 1955.
Patrolman Gillespie was a U.S. Army veteran of WWI and had served with the Pittsburgh Police Department for 40 years.
Survivors
He was survived by his wife.
In Our Keeping
- Permanent identifier
BO-US-PA-3C720DBF- 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.
Patrolman Gillespie gave the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police 40 years.
Thank you for your service. Gone but never to be forgotten.
Rest easy, brother.
— S. Vincent Anthony, U.S. Army 1985-1993
Agency
Service Record
Incident Details
Military Service
John George Gillespie served in the United States military before joining law enforcement. Full service record available on salute.nw.
Patrolman John George Gillespie 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 Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, 38 of 101 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 37.6% of this agency's fallen.
National Cause Distribution
How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. John George Gillespie's cause is highlighted.
How John George Gillespie Compares
When Accident Deaths Occur
Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. John George Gillespie is highlighted in Jan.
Incident Location
Others Who Wore This Badge
100 officers from Pittsburgh Bureau of Police are honored on badge.nw. Showing the 16 most recent.
