Features
On September 16, 1974, 32 women across Canada simultaneously took the oath to become police officers, fundamentally changing the Royal Canadian Mounted Police forever. They arrived at Depot to begin training on September 18 and 19.
Meet some of the women of that pioneering group and many others who have served as civilian employees going back to the late 1890s, when the first jail matrons were hired to tend to prisoners.
The following articles were written to celebrate the 40th anniversary of women in the RCMP in 2014. As such, some of the references may be dated.
Did you know?
In the early years, Mounties' wives were valuable contributors in isolated detachments. Known as the "second man", they assisted their police officer spouses by doing paperwork, feeding prisoners and other duties. Learn how they and others have been working behind the scenes since the 1890s in this section celebrating the contributions of women to the RCMP.
Meet Troop 17
Read about the members of the first female troop who forged a path for the thousands of women who've followed in their footsteps.
Female firsts
Read about the women who were the first to break into a policing specialty area and civilians who've reached the top of their fields.
In focus
40 years of women in red serge
To mark the 40th anniversary of women in red serge in the RCMP, some of the members of Troop 17, the first female troop, and other trailblazing women gathered to reflect on their early days in this inspiring and, at times, humorous video.
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