City Departments

Knoxville Fire Department

Knoxville's First African-American Volunteer Fire Department Formed in 1868


These men were the first African-American firefighters to be hired by the City in 1952. A total of eight men were assigned to Engine Co. 4. The photo embedded in the upper left corner is of former Mayor George Dempster. Fire Chief C.M. Johnson is standing in the middle of the group. (Photo courtesy of the Beck Cultural Exchange Center)


In 1854, the first volunteer fire department in Knoxville formed with 100 volunteers. Fourteen years later, in 1868, William F. Yardley (pictured here) and William Luttrell formed a separate African-American volunteer fire department - and Yardley served as its first fire chief.

(Yardley was politically active in Knoxville, one of the first black members of the Board of Aldermen. He also ran for governor: Click HERE for details.)

 

However, while African-Americans have been protecting lives and property from fires in Knoxville for 149 years, they weren't paid and professionally trained by the City until the 1950s. And the City maintained segregated fire halls for another decade.

“In some ways, Knoxville was progressive, and in many other ways, we lagged behind,” says Fire Chief Stan Sharp, who studies KFD's history and cherishes its rare historic photos. Sharp, who places a high priority on diversity, bemoans the City's slowness in hiring African-American firefighters and integrating its fire halls.

"The Fire Department organized in 1885 as a paid department, but it remained segregated for the next 80 or so years," Sharp says.

There was an unsuccessful attempt in 1899 to hire African-American firefighters.

"I don't know why they wouldn't have done that," Sharp says, shaking his head.

Once KFD began hiring blacks, attitudes toward inclusiveness began to change. The new recruits were extensively trained, and they were assigned to carry out important duties - albeit initially from segregated fire halls.

In 1952, the City hired its first African-Americans as paid firefighters. Eight men joined KFD that year, and they were housed at a separate fire station, Station No. 4, in East Knoxville.

Sharp says that one of these original eight firefighters, Luther Bradley, worked his way up in the Fire Department - first earning the rank of captain, then deputy chief. He also served as the City's fire marshal. Bradley eventually retired from the department and is still living in Knoxville today.



Sharp says it's important for Knoxville to acknowledge the service of its African-American firefighters.

“We need to honor these men and women who not only served the community, risking their lives as firefighters, but also for their roles as ground-breakers," he says.

Currently, the Fire Department reaches out to inner-city organizations when recruiting for its academies. KFD values diversity, Sharp says. It's a part of the mission of the department to make the community it serves aware of the career and service opportunities available at the Fire Department.

"We want our department to be reflective of the community as a whole,” Sharp says.

The present-day Knoxville Fire Department has more than 300 full-time professional firefighters and 19 fire stations.

 

One of City's 1st African-American Firefighters Rose Through the Ranks

As a young man, Luther Bradley never envisioned how his life and career would unfold.

Then in 1952, an opportunity at the Knoxville Fire Department presented itself. Mayor George Dempster decided to hire African-American firefighters for the first time.

Bradley and 10 other African-American men were hired and trained for Fire Department duties. The firefighters, housed at the Engine Company No. 4 fire station in East Knoxville, started battling fires and protecting families on Aug. 6, 1952, after only about a month of training.

“I never, in my early years, dreamed of becoming a fireman,” says Bradley, who made firefighting his career.

He served as captain and later was assigned as the fire inspector for the Fire Prevention Bureau. Seven years after his promotion to fire inspector, he became assistant chief in charge of the bureau. Then in 1980, Luther Bradley was promoted to Deputy Chief and Fire Marshal.

He was born on Aug. 2, 1927, in Knoxville to Roy Bradley and Alma Hardin Bradley. Luther Bradley married Harriet E. Lee in 1948, and they have five children together. Prior to becoming a firefighter, he'd worked as a brick mason and had to travel to find work because masonry jobs in Knoxville were limited at the time.

“The most rewarding aspect of my job was that the job provided for my family of seven, my wife and five kids,” he says.

Luther Bradley was one of many key historical figures - starting off in a segregated fire hall before earning promotions and helping KFD become more welcoming to minority firefighters.



Click here to view a video by WATE TV-6 from 2019


In 1952, the men assigned to Engine Co. No. 4 were segregated from other fire companies. That continued until 1965, when the African-Americans staffing the East Knoxville fire station were relocated to other stations throughout Knoxville as part of efforts to integrate the Fire Department.

Bradley attributes the slow integration of the Knoxville Fire Department to the existence of Jim Crow laws and society-wide segregation during the 1950s and early 1960s. But he did his part - by setting an example as a firefighter and by participating in the Civil-Rights Movement - to nudge progress in Knoxville. During his career, Bradley helped recruit other African-Americans to become firefighters.

Luther Bradley served the Knoxville community as a firefighter for more than 36 years. He retired on Dec. 31, 1988.



Luther Bradley stores his protective firefighting clothing, boots, helmets and other memorabilia as a reminder of his years with the Knoxville Fire Department.



Luther Bradley's lifetime of public service has been recognized by the City and by various community groups. Luther Bradley's badges tell the story of a distinguished 36-year career. He rose through the ranks to serve as Deputy Chief.


Carla Jones breaks gender, color barriers at KFD

Thank you to KnoxTNToday.com for this article on our very own KFD Assistant Chief Carla Jones.

Carla Renee Jordan Jones is one flat-out character you’ll never forget. This is a life-loving, family-loving, job-loving and sports-loving woman. For 30 years come December 2024, she’s been serving the city she loves – Knoxville – in a job she treasures. “For me going to work every day is like going to the playground.”

Her playground is the Knoxville Fire Department (KFD). Life for her is wrapped around family first, then her God and church, and then the KFD. Her office sits across the hall at KFD Headquarters from Chief Stan Sharpe. In June 2020 she was the first woman and the first-ever black woman to be promoted to the position of KFD assistant chief. In this role, she has key supervisory responsibility for logistics, recruiting and ISO ratings for fire insurance.

Jones is 56 with plans to retire in two years, she says. After graduating from Holston High School, she did a little college but eventually began working at a Walgreens store on Magnolia Avenue in 1991. “I was the assistant store manager and we always had the firemen coming in for things,” she remembers. “One day I was talking with one of them (she could not remember his name) who told me the department was hiring and I should join.”

It piqued her interest. She thought about it. “I really like the firemen. They were like heroes to me. So, I decided to apply and it’s been the best job ever for me. How great is it to be a firefighter. This job opened up my eyes to so many things I could do,” she said.

During her first 16 years at KFD she was a captain, a master firefighter, firefighter and an EMT. She rode the engines on calls like everyone else, living and working out of Station 13 (Chapman Highway), Station 10 (Sevier Avenue) and then at Station 16 (Asheville Highway) where she was promoted to captain. Following that promotion, she began working in the Fire Marshal’s Office as a fire inspector and fire officer. Those inspectors check for underground work construction to meet codes, plus fire alarms and sprinklers in commercial buildings and multi-story residential properties. It’s the business of the enforcement of the fire codes.

How would a co-worker describe her? Confident, humble, dependable, positive, efficient, easy to work with, handles business and great personality.

Her years of experience eased the way for her in the assistant chief’s job.

Logistics eats up about 80% of her time, she said. “We support the frontline workers, manage the remodeling of aging stations, deliver supplies to all 19 stations, like paper towels, toilet paper, even lawnmowers. We get them new TVs, furniture, washing machines and replace broken items plus we replace old or broken equipment on the engines and trucks. It’s a lot like doing the upkeep in your own home.”

Speaking of our home, Jones has been married to husband Kenny Jones for 24 years. From 1979-82 he played for the UT Vols football team (#99) and was drafted into the NFL by the Kansas City Chiefs. Today he works at Green Mountain Coffee.

They have a son, Kalen, 22, who works at KUB. He played football at Austin-East High School and was a walk-on at East Tennessee State University. She has a stepson, Kenneth, in Portsmouth, Virginia, “where my two precious grandsons live” – Keanu, 2, and Kai, 1.

The family worships at the Greater Warner AME Zion Church. She loves to spend time with the family, go on “girls’ trips” with her friends and read author James Patterson’s mysteries.

So, what makes Chief Jones tick and be so effective in her life?

“Carla is happy. I am a Christian woman, which makes me so happy. I’ve never come to work in a bad mood. I begin my day, every day, praying. You can call me captain or chief, but the best title I will ever have is mom.

“I love my job and there is not one day when I’ve not wanted to come to work. I’m very compassionate and my heart is with the homeless. I love sports, especially football. I know I’m the first black assistant chief but we really should not be having those kinds of firsts today. Chief Sharpe has put a lot of faith in me and I work every day to live up to his expectations. I also joke around with the best of ’em and I make sure I get them first.”

---

Knoxville Police Department

Knoxville Police Department Integrated Since 1882

After the Civil War, the Knoxville Police Department made history. It hired the City's first African-American police officer in 1882 - and continued to recruit and hire black officers, even at a time when it was virtually unheard of to have minority representation in the uniformed ranks.

Moses Smith was the first African-American police officer in Knoxville, says Civil Rights pioneer and historian Robert J. Booker. Smith served on the Knoxville police force for several years before being appointed as a federal marshal. Additionally, Smith served on the City's Board of Aldermen in 1874 and again in 1878.

How rare was Smith's employment as a black police officer in 1882?

It was extremely unusual. After the Reconstruction era ended, Knoxville was one of just five cities in the South with African-American police officers in its department, according to Booker. The four other cities were located in Texas.

Unfortunately, there are no known publicly available photos of Smith. But check out Knoxville Examiner front page from June 29, 1878. Smith's name appears within a news story discussing “the Colored Schools.” When the story published, Smith was serving on the City's Board of Aldermen. (Photo courtesy of the Calvin M. McClung Historical Collection, Knox County Public Library.)

The Police Department hired its second full-time African-American police officer, James Mason, in 1884.

During Black History Month, City Blog will be researching and publishing interesting items on how African-Americans served the City - either as City employees, or as pioneers in government positions, or as artists and storytellers, such as writer Alex Haley, whose likeness in a unique statue graces the City's Morningside Park.

And we'll also be publishing rarely-seen photos, such as this undated photo of KPD Officer John E. Moffett.
Police Chief David Rausch says KPD has always placed a high value on hiring police officers who are representative of the community they serve.

Knoxville residents should know that “your Police Department represents you and that we understand and appreciate the cultural differences within our community,” Rausch says.

To see an interview with Rausch about KPD's historic embrace of inclusiveness, click on the video below:




Today, about 9 percent of KPD's employees are minorities. A new 39-member Police Academy class starts its training in February, and more than one-fifth of that class will be made up of women and minorities.

Rausch says further increasing the diversity of the Police Department by recruiting, hiring, training and promoting women, African-Americans, Hispanics and other minorities is a top priority. Hiring police officers who reflect the City's demographics is important, because it helps mutually foster deeper understanding and better cooperation between citizens and officers.

"As we celebrate Black History Month, it is appropriate to recognize the outstanding contributions of the black officers who have served Knoxville faithfully from the 1800s up through today," Rausch said. "Their example of service, sacrifice and commitment to the safety of our community over the years has been an inspiration to all of us."


Knoxville's Second African-American Permanent Officer

Officer James Mason was hired in 1884 and served as Knoxville's second African-American permanent officer. Officer Moses Smith was the city's first permanent officer. Post Reconstruction, Knoxville was one of just five cities in the South with black officers in its department.

Officer Mason, in light of his truly distinguished career at KPD and his contributions to the City of Knoxville, was born into slavery in Knoxville about 1840 and was owned by Major James Swan. Officer Mason was fortunate that a member of the Swan family taught him to read at an early age and, while teaching slaves was forbidden in many areas in the South, that was not the case in Knoxville. As the number of free African-Americans soon outnumbered slaves, Officer Mason was given the opportunity to earn money on other jobs when not needed by the Swan family.  

With the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, Officer Mason was eventually granted his freedom. Understanding the value of earning a wage as well as his freedom, he continued to work, with the goal of buying his wife Betty Fountain's freedom as well. With his wife being freed, he shifted his financial focus and used his savings to buy a house and lot on West Cumberland Avenue in 1866, making him the city's first African-American property owner and taxpayer.

Officer Mason was the first to petition the Tennessee School for the Deaf to admit an African-American pupil, unfortunately with no success. In 1879, Officer Mason established a school for deaf children in his home. In 1881, the state Legislature passed a bill for the establishment of a school for African-American deaf children with the first location being in Officer Mason's home. With the appropriation of funds in 1885 by the Tennessee General Assembly, the school was able to move to a site on Dandridge Avenue while serving the needs of 20 students.

Officer Mason was a servant of the Knoxville community and honorably served KPD until his retirement in 1902.


Knoxville's First African-American Female Officer

In October 1955, the Knoxville Police Department hired its first female African-American police officer, Mrs. William Henderson.

Henderson attended Knoxville College and was the wife of a Knoxville firefighter.

---

Knoxville Area Transit (KAT)

KAT Permanent Exhibit Displays History of City's Urban Renewal


In December 2020, Knoxville City Council unanimously passed a resolution calling for making amends for decades of urban renewal which displaced and harmed the City’s Black communities.

As described by the Knoxville News-Sentinel, “the city, largely through eminent domain, systematically tore down entire blocks of homes, churches and businesses in Black neighborhoods in the 1950s through 1970s for projects like the Knoxville Civic Auditorium and Coliseum and construction of new routes like James White Parkway and Interstate 40, among others.”

According to the Beck Cultural Exchange Center, urban renewal displaced more than 2,500 families, more than 70% of whom were Black.

Knoxville Station Transit Center rests on land that experienced urban renewal.

In the Center's lobby, Knoxville Area Transit has a permanent exhibit on display that explores what the eastern end of downtown used to look like, prior to the ill-conceived urban renewal practices from the 1950s through the 1970s. KAT's display also features artifacts unearthed during the transit center construction.



Display images are below. Click on the image to view a larger file in PDF format.






KAT Honors Rosa Parks with an Open Seat on Every Bus, Dec. 1, 2023


On Friday, Dec. 1, KAT will pay tribute to Rosa Parks by keeping one seat open on every bus.

The seat will feature a placard recognizing the contribution made by Parks in the fight for racial justice and equality, and how the small act of sitting down on a city bus changed the course of history in the United States.

Rosa Parks was arrested on December 1, 1955 after refusing to give up her seat to a white man on a bus in Montgomery, Alabama in defiance of 'Jim Crow' segregation laws.

Her action led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a 381-day boycott of the city’s transit system by African Americans which led to the Supreme Court ruling declaring segregation on public transportation systems unconstitutional. The boycott helped end segregation of public facilities in the United States.

“Rosa Parks’s seemingly small act of courage in the fight for racial justice had enormous consequences,” says Isaac Thorne, Director of Transit for the City of Knoxville. “We honor that courage and the work of past civil rights leaders, while recognizing the responsibility we all have to continue to advance efforts to achieve racial equity across our city and our nation.”




KAT's 1st African-American Female Driver Had Something to Prove
February 2018


Geraldetta Dozier was walking home one day when she happened to look up as a bus topped the hill on Harriet Tubman Street. To her surprise, a woman was driving.

"I said, 'Wow,' and I walked right over to the bus offices, which at that time were at Jessamine Street and Fifth Avenue," Dozier said. "I was a student, living in the projects, a single mother raising my baby. I needed to make some money.

"I thought: If she can do it, so can I."

Dozier, now 68, made good on her impulsive career choice. She earned her chauffeur's license (now, a Commercial Driver's License), and in May 1976 was hired as the City's first female African-American bus operator in Knoxville.

Dozier came on board and drove for Knoxville Area Transit during a pivotal time in the transit service's history.

Just a decade earlier, the City of Knoxville had gotten itself into the transit business. The private company Knoxville Transit Lines (KTL) in 1967 had been sold to the City, and KTL changed its name to the Knoxville Transit Corp. (KTC). KTC moved to a new facility on Jessamine Street in 1975. That was a year before Dozier was hired.

In 1978, KTC changed its name to K-Trans, and it moved to Magnolia Avenue in 1989. The bus service changed names again in 1995 - becoming Knoxville Area Transit (KAT). 

By 2010, KAT was operating out of Knoxville Station, a state-of-the-art LEED-certified transit center on Church Avenue, and last year, the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) recognized KAT with the 2017 Outstanding Public Transportation System Achievement Award for small transit systems (less than 4 million passenger trips/year). 



Back to Dozier's story: It turns out, as she was about to make her livelihood maneuvering a 40-foot bus, she had a little secret.

At the time of her hire, she was hard-pressed for cash and didn't have a car. She walked everywhere.

"I wanted to ride," she says, laughing at the irony of going from being a pedestrian to a professional driver.

Not driving a car often, as it turned out, didn't hinder her effectiveness as a bus operator. Dozier went on in her 26-year career to log more than 2 million miles behind the wheel of a KAT bus. 

She once drove in a national bus "roadeo" obstacle course competition in San Diego. She won safe-driving awards at KAT and had just two accidents, neither her fault. (One time, a woman ran a stop sign, and Dozier clipped her bumper, veering her bus hard to avoid T-boning her. "I was actually thanked by that woman," Dozier said.)

Dozier made friends easily at KAT - good friends. She remembers playing cards during breaks between split shifts. And in retirement, she sometimes rides the bus to have a few minutes to catch up if one of her old friends is driving.

"My favorite parts of the job were the people and the driving," she said. "My main route was Dandridge Avenue, and I loved the people. I'd look after them, and they'd look after you. I miss them."

Being the first female African-American driver and only the third woman driver, Dozier said there were the occasional rude or insensitive remarks from passengers. They came rarely, but when they did, they stung.

One time, when she was driving a shuttle to a University of Tennessee football game, a drunk fan directed a racial slur at her. "It shocked me, because it was the first time," she said. But a friendlier response followed: A white female passenger kicked the verbally abusive man off the bus, telling him, "You can't say that to her."

When she got her start as a new driver back in 1976, Dozier admits being a little intimidated at first.

"You'd start out early morning, in the dark, driving this big bus," she said. "I was very scared, but it was something I had to do. I put my scared-ness behind. I wanted to prove a point that, as a black woman, I could do this. I had to prove it to myself."

---