Women in Policing History

Study Notes

Women have been involved in municipal policing in the United States since the late 1800s, initially fulfilling specialist roles assisting and overseeing women and juveniles.
In 1845, the NYPD hired two women to work as matrons in the city's two jails.
In 1893, the Chicago Police Department assigned Mary Owens as a “patrolman”, primarily working with women and children.
In 1905, Lola Baldwin was sworn in as a "female detective" in Portland, Oregon, with powers of arrest, focusing on crime prevention and social work.
Alice Stebbins Wells, hired by LAPD in 1910, is considered the first female police officer “officially designated” as a policewoman, receiving badge number 1.
Wells founded and became the first president of the International Policewomen's Association, promoting female officers across America and Canada.
During the 1930s, women's employment suffered due to the Great Depression, and law enforcement shifted focus from social work to combating crime.

During World War II, more women were hired in law enforcement, mostly in auxiliary roles like dispatchers or clerical workers.
In 1956, the International Association of Women Police was formed to support female officers.
In the 1960s, police departments increasingly needed women crime-fighters for undercover work in vice squads.
In 1968, Elizabeth Robinson and Betty Blankenship became the nation's first female patrol officers in the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.
In 1972, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act outlawed gender discrimination in public agencies, including police departments, expanding opportunities for women.

In 1972, JoAnne Misko and Susan Malone became the first fully sworn FBI agents.
In the 1980s, women like Penny Harrington broke through police departments' "glass ceilings", becoming chiefs of police.
In 1994, Beverly Harvard became the first black female police chief in Atlanta.
Today, over 300 women serve as chiefs of police in departments across the nation.

Predictions that women would make up nearly 50% of the law enforcement workforce by the 21st century did not materialize.
Despite studies showing women can perform all duties of patrol officers and excel in many areas, growth of women in policing has progressed slowly.
Physical strength is often perceived as a limitation for female police officers, leading to questions about their effectiveness in dangerous physical confrontations.