Sam Browne belts: Here is a 1938 photo of members of the Pensacola Police Department in front of the police station at 407 S. Jefferson Street (now the Pensacola Museum of Art). The uniformed officers are wearing Sam Browne belts. in 1858, Sam Browne, a member of the Indian army, charged a reloading cannon crew during a battle at Seeporah. He was badly wounded, losing his left arm. However, he stayed in the army, but had trouble drawing his sword without his left hand to stabilize his belt. So he fashioned another belt to attach to the first one and strap over his right shoulder. The popularity was immediate, and the Sam Browne belt began being used throughout the Indian army and eventually throughout the world by soldiers and law enforcement officers. Today it is worn mainly for ceremonial events, but it carries with it a long, proud history.
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