The 1895 Church of StuArt

At a time when the city was still split by segregation, James L. Hall and Leroy Washington assumed duties as patrolmen on the same day, June 6, 1956. That time, a black officer could not even drive a patrol car in certain parts of the city.

As published in The Stuart News, October 31, 1957.

James L. Hall and LeRoy Washington are members of Stuart Police Department assigned to enforce law and order in colored town. “And they do a fine job,” said Chief of Police Sam Harless. “Our records show that there was lots more trouble in the area before their assignment.” Hall and Washington were put on the force by former chief Ben Boyd on July 6, 1956. Both were born in Martin County, are family men, and have the respect of their community. Hall, 28, is on patrol from 5 p.m. to 1 p.m. six days a week. He is off duty Tuesdays. Washington, 30, works from 7p.m. to 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and from 1p.m. to 9 p.m. Sundays. Both have other jobs with which they supplement their income. “These men are competent patrolmen,” said Chief Harless. “They take no foolishness from anybody and do their jobs efficiently. While their appointments were made under Chief Boyd, I was mighty glad to find them on the force when I came here, because the experience of police departments in many Southern cities proves that the colored patrolman very often understands colored people’s problems better than the white officer.” Both are devoted to their jobs, said Chief Harless. They have a private, unlisted telephone by which they can alert the main office and call for a patrol car in emergency. They have the backing, Chief Harless said, of the church and civic leaders in their community. Washington said, “what trouble we have is those folks who start drinking the minute they get paid’ and said that the “biggest trouble period” is from Friday afternoon through Sunday afternoon. Hall declared that “you can add the fact that juvenile delinquency is a problem. The condition would be helped if parents would ‘lay down the law’ in their homes instead of expecting the police department to straighten out their youngsters.” So the problems of law enforcement aren’t much different in colored and white communities, stemming from the same causes in each, Chief Harless agreed.

James L. Hall (January 12, 1930 – December 30, 2020)

As published in The Stuart News, March 23, 1961
Patrolman James L. Hall, who has done a fine job for Stuart Police Department in Little Dixie since 1956, is a Stuart’s boy, “born and raised here.” He attended the first through ninth grades at Stuart Training School, and subsequently took a correspondence course from the America School, Chicago, to obtain a high school certificate. At STS he played guard for the Lions, and also played semi-pro ball with the Stuart Rams from 1950-56. After leaving school he worked at the A&P Grocery Store for four and a half years, and at Rinker’s Flower Farm for several months, before joining the local force nearly five years ago. Hall is married, and lives on Cocoanut Street with his wife, Roslyn, and five small children. He is a member of Mount Calvary Baptist Church, Young Men’s Improvement Club and the Christmas Lighting Committee, and is co-chairman of the Community Club and scoutmaster and cubmaster of Troop and Pack 736, Boy Scouts of America. To father his education, he has, for the past two years, taken a correspondence course from the well-known police school. the Institute of Applied Science, in Chicago, and was graduated early this year. The course covered finger-printing, identification, investigation and modus operandi.

He was a good and very caring man, and there was no one in this town at the time he was a police officer who didn’t know him. When he talked, people listened. Sgt. James L. Hall’s old-fashioned policing became a fixture at the Stuart Police Department and in the community during his more than 33 years on patrol. For many years he was coach of Little League and Pony League teams, stressing the character-building value of the teams with colored youth, and produced numerous championship teams. For his civic work, Hall was awarded a watch and a plaque by Bob Holmes, master of ceremonies at a party Christmas Eve at the WNAO Club in Port Salerno in 1970. Hall was named “Citizen of the Year.”

Leroy Washington (March 22, 1927 – January 07, 2015)

Drafted into the U.S. Army in 1952, he served in Korea for fourteen and a half months with the 226^th Ordnance Battalion, receiving the Korean Service Medal with two bronze stars, the United Nations Service Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal. He was released to the ready reserves in 1954 with the rank of staff sergeant, and was honorably discharged in July 1959. He began work as full-time gardener for Snug Harbor Corporation in 1954, and was with the corporation when he joined the Stuart Police Department in July 1956 as a part-time (weekend) foot-patrol officer. Felix Williams, a leader of the county’s black community who worked for the Martin County School District, encouraged him to apply for an opening at the department. Washington started working full time as a patrolman in 1960.

Washington worked his way up through the ranks. In 1969, Washington was promoted to a sergeant on the streets.

In 1972, he was assigned to the office as operations commander – the man in charge of the everyday functions of the department. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1974. He also assumed the position of acting chief of police. Lt. Leroy Washington was promoted to the rank of captain and became the commander of the uniform forces, serving as deputy chief of police, announced Stuart Police Chief Charles White in September 1988.

During his career, Washington investigated cases ranging from murders to burglaries to drugs to domestic quarrels. During his retirement, Washington loved to ride his bicycle to the beach and back and after taking a walk through his neighborhood. He also liked fishing, football, boxing and wrestling.

The 1895 Church of StuArt is a historical building of the first community church, also known as the Pioneer Church (the oldest church building in Martin County), built in Stuart in 1895! Your donations help us maintain, restore, and preserve the building, and also continue our research and share historical information and articles. We greatly appreciate your support! The donations are not tax deductible.