Madame CJ Walker Photographs

"I got my start by giving myself a start." - Madame CJ Walker. Born in 1867 in poverty-stricken rural Louisiana, Madame Walker was the daughter of former slaves, she was orphaned at the age of seven, and survived by working in the cotton fields of Delta and Vicksburg, Mississippi. Madame Walker and Marjorie Joyner revolutionized the hair care and cosmetics industry for African American women early in the 20th century.