History of the Metropolitan Police Service been headed by a Commissioner, rather than a Chief Constable which is the highest rank in police forces outside London. The first Commissioners to hold the post were Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Charles Rowan and Sir Richard Mayne. When Sir Charles Rowan died, leaving Sir Richard Mayne as the surviving Commissioner, Captain William Hay was drafted in to jointly run the force with Mayne. However, because the two Commissioners did not agree on methods of running the force, since 1855 it was decided that only one Commissioner would run the force. Metropolitan Police patrols took to the streets on 29 September 1829,
Metropolitan Police Service easily be identified from one or more blue lamps located outside the entrance, which were introduced in 1861. The oldest Metropolitan police station, which opened in Bow Street in 1881, closed in 1992 and the adjoining Bow Street Magistrates' Court heard its last case on 14 July 2006. The oldest operational police station in London is in Wapping, which opened in 1908. It is the headquarters of the marine policing unit (formerly known as Thames Division), which is responsible for policing the River Thames. It also houses a mortuary and the River Police Museum. Paddington Green Police Station, which is