MARY HORN

Mary Horn was the Tulsa Police Department’s first African-American female officer. She was hired in 1939 at the age of 42 and served for 23 years. She patrolled some of the more dangerous areas in the city. She was awarded Officer of the Year in 1958 for her work in solving the sexual assault of a six-year-old child. Horn retired in 1962 and died in 1987 at the age of 89. Her survivors include her son Kermit, who was the first African American officer promoted to lieutenant; and a son Clifford, who was one of the Tulsa Fire Department’s first African American firefighters.

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