Two American Entrepreneurs

At a busy intersection in the bustling city of Indianapolis, Indiana, stands the imposing four-story brick structure known as the Walker Building. Buff-colored terra cotta is used for decorative details, and each doorway is embellished with brightly colored African masks. Completed in 1927, this magnificent building marks the climax of the career of Madam C. J. Walker, one of America's most successful African American businesswomen of the early twentieth century. Much of the building served as the headquarters of the Madam C. J. Walker Manufacturing Company, a business that employed some 3,000 African American women and men to manufacture and sell hair products and cosmetics. The Walker Building, planned by Madam Walker herself but constructed after her death, was designed to serve not only as the headquarters for her business, but as a social and cultural center for African Americans in Indianapolis. Today, it houses the Madam Walker Theatre

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