The Phylliss Henry papers date from 1971 to 2004 and measure 2 linear feet. The papers are arranged in six series: Biographical, Correspondence, Women in policing, Des Moines Police Department, Sex discrimination grievances, and Photographs.

The collection contains material relating to job discrimination , sexual harassment , and women in policing--both generally and within the Des Moines Police Department. Materials concerning racial hostility and discrimination in the Des Moines Police Department are also included.

The Biographical series (1972-1994) contains a rough set of typed manuscripts , many of a personal nature , which include notes about meetings or encounters which Henry found discriminatory as well as writings expressing her growing frustrations with her job at the police department. Also included is a biographical essay that describes the development of her feminist consciousness. Henry briefly discusses the period of her life prior to 1971. A separate folder contains a limited number of documents related to Henry's feminist activities , particularly in connection with the Equal Rights Amendment and abortion rights. The series also contains a clippings file of articles about Henry. Many of these articles are about her charges against the Des Moines Police Department, while others specifically concern her role as a woman working in a non-traditional occupation. Also included in this file are a series of articles Henry wrote for the Iowa State Daily when she worked for the Department of Public Safety. Materials pertaining to Henry's investiture as a U.S. Marshal include letters regarding Henry's application for the position , a transcript and video of the investiture ceremony , and congratulatory letters. Items in the miscellaneous folder include a resume from the mid-1970s and the transcript of a telephone interview with Henry conducted by Ellen Mintz of the Police Foundation in 1974, in which Henry describes her experiences as a women patrol officer.

The Correspondence series (1971-1993) contains approximately forty job inquiries Henry sent out in 1971 and the replies she received from police departments across the country. This series also contains a folder of correspondence relating to complaints about the publication of degrading images of women in "Police Product News." General correspondence contains letters to and from Roxanne Conlin , Senator Dick Clark , Drake University , and women interested in pursuing careers in policing. General correspondence also includes letters to and from various state and federal agencies regarding Henry's charges of sex discrimination.

The Women in policing series (1972-2004) contains a substantial newspaper clippings file covering women in policing during the 1970s , 1980s and 1990s. Articles highlight the activities of women police officers, the concerns of the public and the reactions of the wives of male police officers to the presence of women officers. Other articles refer to specific lawsuits and court rulings in Iowa and the rest of the country that concern policewomen. This series also contains general material on women in policing , a research paper written by Henry about women patrol officers, manuals and reports published by the Police Foundation, and issues of the journal Women Police.

The Des Moines Police Department series (1972-2004) includes job descriptions, civil service correspondence related to Henry's hiring, Henry's personnel forms, internal communication between Henry and other members of the department, and requests for Henry to make public appearances. Much of this material is related to or was used as evidence for Henry's grievances against the department. Newspaper clippings include examples of the resistance of Police Chief Nichols to Henry's presence on the force, and articles pertaining to complaints of sex bias, sexual harassment and racial bias made against the DMPD, including complaints by Henry, Nancy Moore, Myrle Atwood, Deborah Lynch, Charlie Smith, and others between 1972 and 1988.

The Sex discrimination grievances series (1972-1992) includes documents relating to five cases, four against the Des Moines Police Department (including Henry's) and one against the Cedar Rapids Police Department. Materials relating to the Dalaine Gregory Bartel me case consist of a few newspaper clippings and a letter from Henry outlining her testimony for the case. Bartelme worked for the Cedar Rapids Police Department from September 1987 until January 1992. In 1990 she filed a civil suit against the department citing numerous incidents of sexual and other harassment. The Linn County District Court awarded her a cash settlement in May 1992.

Items pertaining to Henry's complaints of sex discrimination include those materials she assembled for her suit as well as other materials related to it. Some of these items are duplicated in other parts of the collection. Also relevant to this material is a deposition which Henry gave as part of Paula Valentine's suit against the Des Moines Police Department (November 1979) in which Henry discusses aspects of her own lawsuit.

In June 1988, an African-American female police recruit, Charlie Smith, filed a complaint with the Internal Affairs Unit of the DMPD in which she accused an officer of using a racial slur to describe a prisoner. Smith was fired for filing a false report after her charge was supported by only one other recruit during an internal investigation. This incident prompted an investigation of the DMPD by the Des Moines Civil Service Commission and by the U.S. Department of Justice. The reports of these two groups and the City Council's response to the latter are included.

Materials related to Deborah Lynch's lawsuit include depositions, court briefs, and police department memos and investigations. Lynch filed a formal internal complaint against two officers of the Des Moines Police Department in March 1985, accusing them of making repeated and unwelcome sexual comments to her in 1984 and 1985; the two were found guilty and given 30-day suspensions. In May 1985, Lynch filed a complaint with the Iowa Civil Rights Commission stating that the police department's remedy was ineffective, and that, in addition, Lynch had been subjected to retaliation by the department after filing the internal complaint. In September 1985, Lynch filed a lawsuit in district court, which went to trial in 1988. Lynch's attorney was Roxanne Conlin. Lynch won her suit, and the city was ordered to pay her $10 ,000 and to implement educational programs on sexual harassment for members of the police department. In 1990 the Iowa Supreme Court sustained this ruling. A succinct summary of Lynch's case can be found in the Supreme Court's ruling.

Henry was involved in the Lynch case through her work with Starr and Associates. She made handwritten notes and remarks on much of the material related to this case. There is also a transcript of a conversation between Lynch and Henry, probably from 1989, in which the two discuss the difficulties facing women in policing and possible solutions.

The Photographs series (c.1970s-1981 and undated) includes color snapshots of Henry in her uniform , probably from the 1970s; photos of Henry and others in Governor Robert Ray's office in 1981 when he proclaimed Police Week in Iowa; and an undated studio portrait of Henry.