Harlem’s Mrs. Velena G. Ellis, The First Black Woman On The NYPD, 1945

Mrs. Velena G. Ellis, in 1945 before the ceremony where she was the first African American woman admitted to the New York bar. Ellis was also the first black woman on the police force and lived on 309 West 154th Street. She was also the first black woman at the 28th precinct to become a layer while being a police officer.