In 1908 the Portland Oregon Police Bureau formed the Women's Protective Division and named Lola Baldwin the head of it. She was the first woman hired by an American municipality to carry out regular enforcement duties. She was sworn in on April 1, 1908 at the age of 48 and was sworn in as a "female detective to perform police service". She had previously in the summer of 1905 worked for the Travelers' Aid Society trying to keep juveniles and young women safe from "Moral Pitfalls" and r...more

The dogs hired to work in police work are very well rounded and self assured animals. They not only do wonderful work searching out, people, articles, or chemicals, but also work easily in public relations. Often the same dog that will track down and hold a suspect, has earlier in the day been to a local school where school children have happily been petting them and watching the dog show how it can track, and then chewed happily on a favorite toy which is the reward for doing its work...more

For those of you that wonder about the black band that is sometimes worn on the badge of an officer or the black ribbon pinned on their shirt, here is a bit of history that I've dug up about the evolution which has come to today's public display of grieving. Asia in the 1600s had a fashion of stitching a band of color to the sleeves of clothes. It was often 5-7 inches and the color would indicate what was happening in the wearer's life. White stood for mourning, and would be plain ...more