Hotel District in Atlanta in Fulton County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

Integration of the Police Department

Auburn Avenue

Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 20, 2021

1. Integration of the Police Department Marker

Inscription. As early as 1867, Atlantans began campaigning for African American police officers. Finally, in 1948, eight Black policemen were sworn into service. Barred from the Decatur Street police station because of their race, the men used the Butler Street YMCA as a makeshift headquarters. Crowds of proud Black citizens often accompanied these men as they walked their beats.

During their first year of service, these officers received neither guns nor patrol cars. They could not arrest White suspects until 1962, the same year Howard Baugh became Atlanta's first Black police lieutenant. These eight courageous individuals paved the way for equality in the police department: 46 years later, a Black woman, Beverly Harvard, was appointed Atlanta's first female police chief. This 1948 photograph shows (left to right) Johnny Jones, Williard Strickland, John Saunders, W.T. Elkins, Robert McKibbens, H.H. Hooks, Claude Dixon and Ernest H. Lyons.

Caption: First Negro Patrolmen employed 2/25/48 and enrolled in Third Police Recruit Training School (March and April, 1948). Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center FIS 4307.0 (Marker Number 14.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Law Enforcement. A significant historical year for this entry is 1948.

Location.

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33° 45.327′ N, 84° 22.783′ W. Marker is in Atlanta, Georgia, in Fulton County. It is in the Hotel District. Marker is at the intersection of Auburn Avenue NE and Bell Street NE, on the right when traveling east on Auburn Avenue NE. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 239 Auburn Ave NE, Atlanta GA 30303, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Odd Fellows Building and Auditorium (a few steps from this marker); Hanley's Funeral Home (within shouting distance of this marker); Auburn Avenue Underpass (within shouting distance of this marker); Bronner Brothers Store (within shouting distance of this marker); Big Bethel A.M.E. Church (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Big Bethel A.M.E. Church (about 300 feet away); Soul Food Row (about 600 feet away); Dobbs Plaza (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Atlanta.

Also see . . .
1. Atlanta’s First Black Police Officers. Article by Conor Lee for History Atlanta, posted Aug. 22, 2013 — not long after the last of the original eight officers had passed. (Submitted on November 22, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

2. The Story of the First African American Police Officers in Atlanta. Jeffri Chadiha joins Georgia natives Kenyan Drake of the Dolphins

Integration of the Police Department Marker detail image. Click for full size.

Kenan Research Center at the Atlanta History Center/Fair use

2. Integration of the Police Department Marker detail

Atlanta's initial class of African American police officers.

and Dalvin Tomlinson of the Giants to tell the story of the first African American police officers in Atlanta’s history — and the artistic efforts to celebrate the memory of these civil rights pioneers. (NFL Network, Feb. 27, 2019) (Submitted on November 22, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)

Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 20, 2021

3. Integration of the Police Department Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 8, 2023. It was originally submitted on November 21, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 289 times since then and 44 times this year. Photos: 1. submitted on November 21, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 2, 3. submitted on November 22, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.