02/27/2026
The St. Louis Fire Department has existed since 1857 -- making it the third oldest career fire department in the country. It didn't hire a woman until 1987. In the nearly four decades since, it has hired exactly 33 female firefighters -- total. So when five Black women were promoted to Fire Captain together this month, it wasn't just historic. It was a huge crack in a ceiling that has barely budged in 40 years. "It's just unbelievable and it's a pleasure and joy to share it with my sisters," said Fire Captain Cicely Tucker.
The newly appointed captains are Licole McKinney, Jessica Jackson, Pamela Saunders-Isaac, Elizabeth McCormick, and Cicely Tucker. Their paths to this moment could not have been more different -- a healthcare worker inspired by a traumatic emergency call, a homeless single mother who heard a radio ad, a Navy veteran who ended up with the fire department by a twist of fate, a woman who laughed at the idea of the job before scoring in the top 100 out of 2,000 applicants. But they all beat the same odds.
"The last stats that I read on African Americans in the fire service was the fire service is 8% African American and I believe around 2% women and I think as far as Black women go, I'm sure there's even a smaller percentage there," McCormick pointed out. They now join Captain Carolyn Moore, a 35-year veteran, bringing the total number of Black female Fire Captains in the department to six.
And they had to fight for it -- literally. Four years ago, the City of St. Louis halted promotions. Several of these women, including Jackson and McKinney, had already been serving as acting captains -- doing the work, carrying the responsibility -- without the title or the pay. So they sued. A judge ruled in their favor in 2026, and 18 captains and nine battalion chiefs were formally promoted as a result. These women didn't just wait for the door to open. They took the city to court to get what they had earned.
Each of these women spoke about the loneliness of the work -- being the only woman in a district, the only Black woman in a firehouse, the constant pressure to prove themselves in ways their male colleagues never have to. "People say you don't have to prove yourself, but we do," said McKinney.
Saunders-Isaac was equally direct about what women still face: "Some people are not used to working with women, some people don't want to work with women. I'm just being real." Jackson described having to force open doors that weren't built for her: "We have to put our foot down and say, like, we're here and we're doing a doggone good job."
Through it all, they spoke about each other -- the stairs they ran together, the hoses they pulled, the study sessions, the advice, the shake-me-up talks when one of them needed to get her head in the game. From strangers to sisters, as Tucker put it: "There's room for crying, but not quitting."
And for the next generation of girls watching, McCormick had a message: "We are here and we belong here, and for little girls, you can be here and you belong here too."
For a picture book about a Black woman fire chief, we highly recommend "Fire Chief Fran" for ages 4 to 8 at https://www.amightygirl.com/fire-chief-fran
The little known story of America's first female firefighter -- a Black woman in New York City - is told in the inspiring picture book “Molly, by Golly!: The Legend of Molly Williams” for age 5 to 8 at https://www.amightygirl.com/molly-by-golly
There is also an inspiring picture book about the first woman to join the New York City Fire Department: "Send a Girl!" for ages 5 to 9 at https://www.amightygirl.com/send-a-girl
For a fun picture book about a female firefighter saving the say, we recommend "Firefighter Flo!" for ages 3 to 6 at https://www.amightygirl.com/firefighter-flo
For young children, there is also a Julia Magnetic Dress Up Career Doll for ages 3 to 6 which includes firefighter and police officer in its career options at https://www.amightygirl.com/julia-dress-up-doll
To read more about the five captains' promotions, visit https://www.ksdk.com/article/news/local/black-history/five-black-women-make-history-as-st-louis-firefighters-rise-to-captain-together/63-9edc9ad3-8e0e-4aa0-adc9-8e29541b761e
