The Merchant Prince of Black Chicago by Robert E. Weems Jr.

There, Overton started a popular magazine aimed at African American women that helped him dramatically grow his cosmetics firm. Washington, through early failures, to a fateful move to Chicago in 1911. Dispelling stubborn myths, he traces Overton's rise from mentorship by Booker T. restores Overton to his rightful place in American business history. Yet, despite success and acclaim as the first business figure to win the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, Overton remains an enigma.Robert E. Overton's Chicago-based empire ranged from personal care products and media properties to insurance and finance. His books include Business in Black and White: American Presidents and Black Entrepreneurs in the Twentieth Century and Building the Black Metropolis: African American Entrepreneurship in Chicago.Born to enslaved parents, Anthony Overton became one of the leading African American entrepreneurs of the twentieth century. Garvey Distinguished Professor of Business History at Wichita State University. Revealing and panoramic, The Merchant Prince of Black Chicago weaves the fascinating life story of an African American trailblazer through the eventful history of his times. Overton went on to become the first African American to head a major business conglomerate, only to lose significant parts of his businesses-and his public persona as 'the merchant prince of his race'-in the Depression, before rebounding once again in the early 1940s. Yet, despite success and acclaim as the first business figure to win the NAACP’s Spingarn Medal, Overton remains an enigma. The booms and busts of the celebrated African American entrepreneurīorn to enslaved parents, Anthony Overton became one of the leading African American entrepreneurs of the twentieth century.

The Merchant Prince of Black Chicago by Robert E. Weems Jr.