Election Inspector and Police Lieutenant Gordon Moore

One of my favorite historic Beverly Hills photos is of Gordon Moore handing an election ballot to Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks at the Beverly Hills Hotel precinct. Moore's "Roaring Twenties" attire was golf knickers and long, wool socks. But clothing aside, he is also an important member of this city's storied past. 

Moore and his family moved to the 900 block of North Beverly Drive in 1919, just five years after Beverly Hills' incorporation. His brother Harley Moore built a home adjacent to his.

First working in his family's real estate business, as Moore's nephew Gordon E. Moore (Harley Moore's son) recently told me, Uncle Gordon was always ready to take part in community affairs.

As a community volunteer, Moore served as an election inspector on the city board. His call to civic duty also landed him a position as a reserve police officer.

According to The Hot Sheet of June 1954, published by the Beverly Hills Police Reserve, Gordon and 29 other residents were issued police badges and admitted to the city's police reserve prior to the Unites State's entry into World War II. After Pearl Harbor was attacked on Dec. 7, 1941, Moore and other members of the reserve were immediately deputized into the city's new auxiliary police unit so that they could carry guns and guard the city's strategic properties. This role suited Moore quite well, as he was an expert rifleman. He eventually moved up the ranks of the city's police force, earning the title of lieutenant.

Moore's wife, referred as "Mrs. Gordon Moore," was also active in the community. She was a member of the Beverly Hills Women's Club and one of the founders of the Beverly Hills Auxiliary to the Children's Hospital, according to historian Wanda Phillips in her 1969 column "Memo from Wanda" in the Beverly Hills Courier. 

Moore knew most of the celebrated individuals who moved to town, and was also a friend and neighbor to , the city's first and last honorary mayor. Though he didn't star in movies or get elected to political office, Moore's dedication as a volunteer and member of the police department make him one of Beverly Hills' many unsung hometown heroes.

Thanks for reading, Russ.