Cincinnati's First African American Police Officer and Firefighter

Learn About Cincinnati’s First African American Police Officer and Firefighter!

Identifying Cincinnati’s first African American police officer was more like investigating than researching. In a Fox 19 interview in February 2020, Stephen Headley, reference librarian at the Cincinnati Public Library, points to a July 1884 Commercial Gazette publication, “One colored gentleman, Mr. Hiram Carroll, has been appointed on the police force. This is the first appointment of a colored man ever made on the regular force of this city.”

According to press clippings, whether Hiram Carroll ever actively served remains unclear, and any tenure would have been brief. Carroll was fired in August for being three-quarters of an inch too short.

Henry Hagerman and the African American History

Henry Hagerman, , first police and firefighter — Henry Hagerman, the first Black police officer, according to Stephen Kramer

Another interview for the Fox 19 story featured retired Police Lieutenant Stephen Kramer, who worked at the Greater Cincinnati Police Museum and stated, “Henry Hagerman was believed to be the first Black Cincinnati police officer.”

The state shut down the Cincinnati Police Department due to corruption scandals, leaving most of the department’s African American history before 1886 documented primarily in Wendell Dabney’s book, Cincinnati’s Colored Citizens, published 40 years later.

Dabney’s research listed Hagerman as an officer in 1884, but photos show a badge predating any existing badge from 1886. Adding to the confusion, the Commercial Gazette reported, “Henry Hagerman was sworn in yesterday as a special policeman,” not in 1884, but in 1885.

Herbert Banes

Herbert Bane, first police and firefighter — Herbert Bane, the First Black Firefighter

Identifying Cincinnati’s first African American firefighter was more straightforward but still confusing. According to the Cincinnati Fire Museum, Herbert Banes served the Fire Department for ten years in 1955. Banes then worked as a fire captain at the Pacific Missile Range and a fire chief in the Republic of Vietnam.

According to local media, Bane died in July 2019, and a procession of Cincinnati Firefighters marched from Bond Hill Academy to the Church of the Resurrection on California Avenue in his honor.

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About The First 28

The First 28, graciously sponsored by the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, celebrates Black Cincinnatians who were the first in their fields. Each day during Black History Month, we will celebrate athletes, artists, business leaders, civil rights activists, educators, physicians, and politicians.

The Voice of Black Cincinnati is a media company designed to educate, recognize, and create opportunities for African Americans. Want to find local news, events, job postings, scholarships, and a database of local Black-owned businesses? Visit our homepage, explore other articles, subscribe to our newsletter, like our Facebook page, join our Facebook group, and text VOBC to 513-966-3328.