When and where was Britain’s first Black policeman?

My previous post was about the female friendship at the heart of my novella, Stolen Summers. This is about my character Matilda’s short-lived friendship with a male patient and the surprising discovery I made when I was researching his background.

I made Eustace a Black World War I veteran, partly to do my small bit to counter the invisibility of Black Britons prior to the 1950s and partly to fit with one of the themes of the third book in this series, Lyrics for the Loved Ones. When I turned to Black Poppies by Stephen Bourne to help flesh out his character, I was shocked to learn about the race riots in 1919.

I think I was less shocked by the shabby treatment of Black servicemen after the end of the Great War than I was shocked I knew nothing about it.

The book mentions attacks on Black families in large harbour towns in England and Wales. I wondered if there were Black communities in the smaller seaports in Cumbria, where my character Matilda grew up.

The local history group I approached couldn’t give me an answer. But they did lead me to an interesting article about the first Black policeman in Britain. And he began his duties in Maryport, Cumbria, much earlier than I would have guessed.

When do you think John Kent was appointed? You can check how close you are by following the link to the article:

John Kent, Britain’s first Black policeman