- Born Sarah Breedlove on December 23, 1867
- Moved to Vicksburg, Mississippi in 1877 after the death of both parents
- Breedlove was hired as a commission agent by Annie Malone, and she moved to Denver, Colorado in 1905
- Married Charles Joseph Walker – 1905
- Adopted the moniker Madam C.J. Walker as she began to create her line of cosmetics – Madam Walker’s Wonderful Hair Grower
- Walker opened a factory and a beauty school, the Lelia College for Walker Hair Culturists, in Pittsburgh in 1908
- Created the Walker System: a vast line of cosmetics, licensed Walker Agents, and Walker Schools
- Moved operations to Indianapolis, Indiana; built a factory, hair and manicure salon, and another training school
- Employed up to 5,000 workers and agents
- First female self-made millionaire in the United States
- In 1927, her daughter, A’Lelia Walker Robinson completed the Walker Building in her memory
- United States Postal Service issued a stamp of Madam C.J. Walker for its “Black Heritage” series – 1998
- Madam C.J. Walker died of hypertension on May 25, 1919
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