Madam
Sarah
Breedlove McWilliams
(C.J.)
"Madam C. J. Walker"
Walker
formerly Breedlove
Born December 23, 1867
in Delta, Louisiana
Daughter of
Owen Breedlove and
Minerva Breedlove
Sister of
Louvenia , Alexander Breedlove, James Breedlove, Owen Breedlove and louvenia Breedlove
Wife of
Charles Walker
(Married in
[location?] January 1906 to 1910)
Wife of
John Davis
(Married in
[location?] 1894 to 1993)
Wife of
Moses McWilliams
(Married in
[location?] 1855 to 1903)
Mother of
Lelia Walker and Lelia Walker [add child]
Died May 25, 1919
in New York, New York
About C.J. Walker
Madam C.J. Walker left her mark on history as an African-American business woman, entrepreneur and philanthropist whose beauty products empire led her to become the first self-made female millionaire (according to The Guinness Book of Records). Born Sarah Bleedlove on December 23, 1867, she was the daughter of former slaves and lived a childhood touched by poverty and despair. In 1878 she lost her parents to yellow fever, forcing her and her sisters to move to Vicksburg. Upon arriving in Vicksburg, they took on jobs as maids.
When Sarah was fourteen she married Moses McWilliams. She became a widow at the age of 20, and quickly remarried a gentleman by the name of John Davis. When their relationship failed, she married for a third time to Charles Joseph Walker and changed her name to "Madam C.J. Walker". She had one daughter named Lelia Walker.
Madam Walker went through many obstacles in her life but managed to become a successful woman entrepreneur - founding the Madam C.J. Walker Manufacturing Company to produce and sell hair care products and cosmetics. She states to have built her company on an actual dream she had where a large African-American man appeared and gave her a formula for curing baldness. With the help of her husband Charles Walker and daughter Lelia Walker, Madam C.J. Walker initially sold her products door-to-door; later moving her operations from St. Louis to a new industrial complex in Indianapolis.
Madam C.J. Walker died at the age of 51 on Sunday, May 25, 1919 from complications of hypertension (high blood pressure). When she died, she was considered to be the wealthiest African-American woman in America. Her daughter Lelia succeeded her as president of the C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company.
Madam C.J. Walker's strength and lasting legacy has inspired many African-American women to enter the business world.
"Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come; you have to get up and make them."
-Madam C.J. Walker
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