William P. Devlin, 91, Philadelphia deputy police commissioner 1980-84

William P. Devlin, 91, of Souderton, deputy Philadelphia police commissioner from 1980 to 1984, died Wednesday, May 16, at Phoebe Richland Health Care Center near Quakertown.

Mayor William J. Green, on the eve of his inauguration in January 1980, appointed Morton B. Solomon as police commissioner and named Mr. Devlin, a chief inspector with a 34-year career as a police officer, as one of two deputies to Solomon. The other deputy was Donald M. Gravatt.

Mr. Devlin had been appointed a Fairmount Park guard in February 1946 and rose through the ranks to captain in 1961 and inspector in 1968.

The former Fairmount Park Commission voted in May 1972 to merge the 550-person Park Guards force into the 7,500-person Police Department. Mr. Devlin, who had been acting superintendent of the Park Guards, was named acting chief inspector of the new park division of the Police Department.

A daughter, Theresa McDonough, said that Mr. Devlin was involved in planning for events related to the 1976 Bicentennial and the celebration of the Phillies' World Series win in 1980, among others. He was a member of the Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association and a graduate of the FBI National Academy, his daughter said.

Born in Philadelphia, Mr. Devlin graduated from Northeast Catholic High School in 1938. He was an expediter at SKF Industries in North Philadelphia, a manufacturer of ball bearings, before becoming a member of an Army Air Corps quartermaster unit in the South Pacific.

Besides his daughter, Mr. Devlin is survived by his wife of 70 years, Claire; daughters Lillian McGinnis and Claire Rusczyk; a brother; seven grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.

A viewing was set from 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday, May 22, at St. Maria Goretti Church, 1601 Derstine Rd., Hatfield, before a 10 a.m. Funeral Mass there, with burial in Calvary Cemetery, West Conshohocken.

Contact Walter F. Naedele at 215-854-5607 or wnaedele@phillynews.com.