Tag Archives: Madame Walker Photos
Celebrating Madam Walker’s Legacy: A Walker Family Perspective
One of my earliest memories of my great-great-grandmother’s existence is seeing her monogram on the silverware we used everyday. “CJW” for “C. J. Walker,” the name Sarah Breedlove McWilliams adopted after marrying her third husband, Charles Joseph Walker. I grew … Continue reading
Madam Walker’s 1917 Convention: Entrepreneurship & Protest Politics
On August 31, 1917, Madam C. J. Walker hosted the first national convention of her Walker “beauty culturists” at Philadelphia’s Union Baptist Church. More than 200 women from all over the United States gathered to learn about sales, marketing and … Continue reading
Faith Ringgold’s “The Sunflowers Quilting Bee at Arles” and Madam C. J. Walker
Between friendship links on Facebook and research on Ancestry.com (which I’ve decided is Facebook for the dearly departed), I’ve been able to make connections and conduct a level of intimate research for my new book about my great-grandmother, A’Lelia Walker, that I … Continue reading
A’Lelia Walker’s Sterling Silver Flask
Now that I’m into the serious writing phase of my new biography of A’Lelia Walker (1885-1931), my great-grandmother and the only daughter of entrepreneur and philanthropist Madam C. J. Walker, I’ll be posting more stories about the discoveries I’ve been … Continue reading
1945 Madam Walker Annual Yearbook
This afternoon as I was looking through my files I came across this 1945 Madam Walker Annual Yearbook. Each year the Madam C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company published an almanac with information for its thousands of sales agents. 1945 Walker … Continue reading
Family Photos and Serendipity
When it comes to my research about Madam Walker and A’Lelia Walker, I have had many incredibly serendipitous moments. Sometimes the stars align and long lost items seem to find their way back home. Last fall, out of the blue, … Continue reading
A’Lelia Walker’s Paisley Coat featured in “Notorious and Notable Women”
In 2010 the Museum of the City of New York included the late 1920s beaded paisley coat of A’Lelia Walker, Madam C. J. Walker’s daughter, with the clothing of other iconic New York women in its “Notorious and Notable Women” … Continue reading
Childhood Memories
As a little girl, I remember being mesmerized by a tall, green Chinese lacquer secretary that stood in the entryway of my grandfather’s apartment. Tucked inside its handpainted drawers were tiny treasures–letters, keys, stamps and coins from foreign countries–that had belonged … Continue reading
Madam Walker Doll Collection
Through the years, I’ve collected several Madam Walker dolls. Some truly are works of art created by some of America’s premiere dollmakers. I especially love the hats and the furs. You can tell they’re made with love.
