African Americans in the Foreign Service

Notable firsts:

• Ebenezer Don Carlos Bassett was the first African-American diplomat.
• Clifton R. Wharton was the first African American to join the Foreign Service. He was also the first African American appointed as chief of a diplomatic mission to a European country.
• Edward R. Dudley was the first African American to hold the rank of Ambassador.
• Patricia Roberts Harris was the first African American woman to hold the rank of Ambassador.