Sybil Virginia Plumlee was an American teacher, caseworker, and police officer who served in Portland, Oregon's Women's Protective Division, a special unit of the Portland Police Bureau, from 1947 to 1967.
17 Facts About Sybil Plumlee
1.
2.
Sybil Plumlee is recognized as a pioneer in the law enforcement field, which has historically been dominated by men.
3.
Sybil Plumlee became a school teacher in Clarno, Oregon, but later returned to Portland, where she married and had a son.
4.
In 1945, she married Virgil "Paul" Sybil Plumlee, who died in 2010.
5.
Sybil Plumlee wrote an unpublished memoir of her experiences on the police force, called Badge 357.
6.
Sybil Plumlee was the oldest living former member of the city's police force prior to her death in 2012.
7.
Sybil Plumlee Virginia Burgess was born on April 29,1911, in Seattle, Washington.
8.
Sybil Plumlee was the daughter of Charles and Stella Burgess.
9.
Sybil Plumlee returned to Portland, married Lloyd Barker, and had a son, Louis Barker.
10.
Sybil Plumlee occasionally worked as a soda fountain clerk at a drugstore in northeast Portland, and as a cab driver.
11.
Sybil Plumlee survived the 1948 flood that destroyed Vanport, Oregon.
12.
Sybil Plumlee passed the test, and was selected from a pool of 300 applicants to fill the Portland Police Bureau's only open position.
13.
The family needed her income: Paul, a World War II veteran, suffered from posttraumatic stress disorder and had difficulty holding steady jobs, and Sybil Plumlee was contributing to the support of her aging mother.
14.
Sybil Plumlee served in the unit known as the Women's Protective Division from 1947 to 1967.
15.
Sybil Plumlee often responded to cases involving child abuse or abandonment.
16.
Sybil Plumlee purchased her first computer when she was in her eighties, and continued driving until age 98.
17.
Sybil Plumlee wrote an unpublished memoir of her experiences on the police force, which was called Badge 357.