Madam C. J. Walker Beauty Book, ca. 1928 | ANTIQUES ROADSHOW

Learn about the life, career, and philanthropic activism of Madam C. J. Walker with this video excerpt from ANTIQUES ROADSHOW as well as two primary source documents and a background essay. Books and manuscripts appraiser Ken Sanders discusses the value of the Text Book of the Madam C. J. Walker Schools of Beauty Culture, the first textbook for African American women’s hair styling and fashion, published in 1928. Sarah Breedlove, later known as “Madam C. J. Walker,” was born to two former slaves on a Louisiana plantation in 1867. She was the first child in the family born into freedom after the Emancipation Proclamation and the ratification of the 13th Amendment. She married Charles Joseph Walker in 1906 and adopted his name (C. J. Walker). Committed to building a good life for her daughter and empowering African American women, C. J. Walker founded the Madam C. J. Walker Company in 1910. The company was a tremendous financial success, established C. J. Walker as a pioneering African American female entrepreneur and philanthropist, and made her an inspiration for African American women.