John Ward's Daughter

In talking with Terry Ommen about the history of the Visalia PD, he introduced me to an early member of the detective squad, John Ward. Ward was essentially the No. 2 man at the VPD until he retired in the 1960s after he started there in the late 1940s. I interviewed his daughter by telephone, and with that interview, the interview with Ommen and newspaper clippings, I now have a good idea of who this man was and I am going to make him the central figure in my final project.

I think Ward makes a very good icon for the difference between a real and a fictional detective. Ward's daughter, Sally, also gave me some insight into the internal politics of the early days of the VPD that I won't use in the paper because I feel like it would be too controversial since some of these people are still alive and living in the area.