Capers Wannamaker, Jr.
Chief of Police

Capers Wannamaker, Jr.

St. Matthews Police Dept. — St. Matthews, SC
Accident Veteran →
End of Watch March 19, 2011
Age 60
Tour of Duty 25 yrs
The Vigil Panel 160 ›
Gender Male

Incident

Chief of Police Capers Wannamaker was killed in an automobile accident when his patrol car left the roadway and struck a tree on Burke Road.

Chief Wannamaker was a U.S. Army veteran of the Vietnam War and had served with the St. Matthews Police Department for 14 years. He had previously served with the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office for eight years and the South Carolina Department of Corrections for three years.

In Our Keeping

Permanent identifier
BO-US-SC-03D44AD1
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.
Chief of Police Wannamaker gave the St. Matthews Police Department 25 years.
Thank you for your service to the St. Matthews 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

Location St. Matthews, SC
Platform Identity smpd.calhoun.sc.us.gov.nw

Service Record

End of Watch March 19, 2011
Tour of Duty 25 yrs
Age 60
Gender Male

Incident Details

Cause Accident

Military Service

Capers Wannamaker, Jr. served in the Army (1971–1973) before joining law enforcement.

View full service record on salute.nw →

Chief of Police Capers Wannamaker, Jr. 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 SC, 137 of 438 officers were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 31.3% of this state's fallen. That is 0.3 percentage points above the national rate of 31%.

At St. Matthews Police Dept., 1 of 2 officers on record were lost to accidents in the line of duty — 50% of this agency's fallen.

St. Matthews Police Dept.
1
of 2 officers
50% Accident
SC — Statewide
137
of 438 officers
31.3% Accident
Nationwide
10,088
of 32,508 officers
31% Accident

National Cause Distribution

How Accident compares to all causes of officer death in the memorial record. Capers Wannamaker, Jr.'s cause is highlighted.

Felonious
17,623 (54.2%)
Accident
10,088 (31%)
Illness
2,974 (9.1%)
Cardiac
1,306 (4%)
Undetermined
260 (0.8%)
Suicide
256 (0.8%)
vehicular
1 (0%)

How Capers Wannamaker, Jr. Compares

Age at End of Watch
60
This officer
Avg for Accident: 38.1 years
Years of Service
25
This officer
Avg for Accident: 9.1 years

When Accident Deaths Occur

Monthly distribution of Accident deaths across the full memorial record. Capers Wannamaker, Jr. is highlighted in Mar.

Jan
820
Feb
730
Mar
748
Apr
707
May
847
Jun
795
Jul
897
Aug
937
Sep
913
Oct
925
Nov
872
Dec
897

Others Who Wore This Badge

1 officer from St. Matthews Police Dept. are honored on badge.nw.