He remained there for nearly four years until the double murder committed by Charles Jefferds in 1860 prompted his transfer to the Twenty-Second Street Police Station.
During the New York Draft Riots in 1863, although his stationhouse was burned down by a mob, he was one of the few police captains able to mount a defense against the rioters.
[1] He organized the defense of several key buildings in Manhattan including the State Armory and the Union Steam Works, the latter being guarded by Sergeant Francis J. Banfield and a police squad of 20 officers.
Cameron was the third prominent police official, after Inspectors Daniel C. Carpenter and James Leonard, to die in similar circumstances.
Cameron's body was removed to his home on Cannon Street until the day of his funeral when it was escorted by a police detail to St. Paul's Methodist Episcopal Church.