CINCINNATI, Ohio—There was a time when a lot of kids would dream of being a cop someday.

  • The Greater Cincinnati Police Museum has been collecting law enforcement artifacts for decades
  • The museum's collection features items from police departments all around Cincinnati, some that don't even exist anymore
  • The museum is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 10 until 4  

For William Beuke, his days of patrolling the streets of Cincinnati ended with retirement in 2002. He's now a curator of sorts.

“You don't stop being a cop. I grew up, my father was a policeman, of course he told me, 'You don't want that job, get yourself a real job.' A friend of mine talked me into it and the rest is history,” said Beuke, Greater Cincinnati Police Museum director.

Sergeant Beuke started volunteering at the Greater Cincinnati Police Museum in 2008.

“We represent every federal, state, and local law enforcement agency in the tri-state area… Northern Kentucky, Eastern Indiana, Southwest Ohio, basically every county that touches Hamilton County,” said Beuke.

From uniforms and communication devices, to polygraph and fingerprinting machines—

“It's an ongoing collection. It'll never stop,” said Beuke.

The museum is a shrine to area law enforcement.

“In our archives we have books and items from the late-1800's and the like,” said Beuke.

 The most notable display — a wall of honor — of fallen officers dating back to the 1800s.

Beuke says it's not the wall that he thinks is most important, but the message of what the wall means.

“The officers. What they did… what they've given up for their community,” said Beuke. “The wall is just loaded with officers that gave their life for their community.”

The museum also features a Colt collection of d-frame handguns on loan to the museum.

But the most notable collection of guns is that of former Cincinnati defense attorney Foss Hopkins. Each gun in this case is a murder weapon.

The museum is also about promoting law enforcement, and acting as a bridge for community relations.

The museum is staffed by volunteers — all retired police officers, with the exception of two.

“We need to provide a space for people to really come down in a non-confrontational way and view what we have, ask questions, and tell stories,” said Beuke.

With over 10,000 artifacts and archive materials, there is nothing quite like it in Ohio.

And there is nothing quite like Handsome —an untrained police dog with hundreds of arrests —who died in 1912.

But he'll still greet you when you get off the elevator at the Greater Cincinnati Police Museum.

The museum is open Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays from 10 until 4.

Admission is $8 for adults, $7 dollars for seniors 65 and older, and $6 for children.