An Officer and a Gentleman

While some New Yorkers were largely unaware of the civil war and other conflicts emerging in Spain, in Manhattan’s 13th Precinct, Dionysius Eturaspe dreamed of a Basque revolution.

He had such passion for the cause that an NYPD newsletter mentioned that people heard him whispering “March forward, my brave Basques!” in his sleep.

David Albert Eturaspe discovered this and other anecdotes about his Basque-American uncle through the pages and research of El Diario/La Prensa.

In the 1920s, among the more than 20,000 police officers in the city, Dionysius Eturaspe—whose family’s last name, Iturraspe, was changed in Ellis Island—was unique. The New Yorker, born to Spaniards who immigrated in the late 19th century, became known for being “talkative and having a gift for improvising speeches.” This was mentioned in an article called “A Spanish Basque young man is among the cream of the NYPD,” published in this paper on Feb. 5, 1925.

Unlike his admired relative, who spoke English, Basque and Spanish, David, 76, never learned the language of Cervantes. However, thanks to a translation of those pages of La Prensa, he and his wife, Grace, 74, connected the dots of Dionysius’ life during a visit to their house in Newtown, Connecticut.

That’s how they found out about his adventures as a plumber on the “Orizaba,” the ship he traveled on to his parents’ homeland. They also discovered that he patrolled the corner of West 22nd Street and Broadway, and that he received the “Walter Scott Medal for Valor,” an award he earned by single-handedly bringing down four thieves in a nightclub on 15th Street.

Married twice, the police officer had no children. But David was always the favorite of “uncle Dennys”.

Grace was also lucky. The day he met her, Dionysius gave her an amethyst ring, a piece of jewelry that belonged to a family member who sup·pos·edly was a baroness. In addition to that “treasure,” the couple was treated to his songs on their wedding day and the inheritance he left them when he died.

“With that $7,000, we completed the down payment for our first home,” David said.

When he left the Marine Corps, David applied to the NYPD. “He (Dionysius) was so proud.” But when he was accepted almost a year later, “I was already making too much money and had a daughter on the way,” he said.

Even though he didn’t smoke or drink, Dionysius always had a rare cardiac condition that ended his life at 65—after he proudly wore the NYPD uniform for three decades.