{"product_id":"book-ca1g","title":"Black Fortunes","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe astonishing untold history of America’s first black millionaires—former slaves who endured incredible challenges to amass and maintain their wealth for a century, from the Jacksonian period to the Roaring Twenties—self-made entrepreneurs whose unknown success mirrored that of American business heroes such as Henry Ford, John D. Rockefeller, and Thomas Edison.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhile Oprah Winfrey, Jay-Z, Beyoncé, Michael Jordan, and Will Smith are among the estimated 35,000 black millionaires in the nation today, these famous celebrities were not the first blacks to reach the storied one percent. Between the years of 1830 and 1927, as the last generation of blacks born into slavery was reaching maturity, a small group of smart, tenacious, and daring men and women broke new ground to attain the highest levels of financial success.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBlack Fortunes\u003c\/em\u003e is an intriguing look at these remarkable individuals, including Napoleon Bonaparte Drew—author Shomari Wills’ great-great-great-grandfather—the first black man in Powhatan County (contemporary Richmond) to own property in post-Civil War Virginia. His achievements were matched by five other unknown black entrepreneurs including:\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMary Ellen Pleasant, who used her Gold Rush wealth to further the cause of abolitionist John Brown;\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRobert Reed Church, who became the largest landowner in Tennessee;\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eHannah Elias, the mistress of a New York City millionaire, who used the land her lover gave her to build an empire in Harlem;\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOrphan and self-taught chemist Annie Turnbo-Malone, who developed the first national brand of hair care products;\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMadam C. J Walker, Turnbo-Malone’s employee who would earn the nickname America’s \"first female black millionaire;\"\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMississippi school teacher O. W. Gurley, who developed a piece of Tulsa, Oklahoma, into a \"town\" for wealthy black professionals and craftsmen\" that would become known as \"the Black Wall Street.\"\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cp\u003eA fresh, little-known chapter in the nation’s story—A blend of \u003cem\u003eHidden Figures, Titan,\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Tycoons\u003c\/em\u003e—\u003cem\u003eBlack Fortunes\u003c\/em\u003e illuminates the birth of the black business titan and the emergence of the black marketplace in America as never before.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"HarperCollins","offers":[{"title":"Audiobook","offer_id":49345062371632,"sku":"BDca1g","price":23.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Audio CD","offer_id":49345062404400,"sku":"ZEca1g","price":39.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Audio MP3-CD","offer_id":49345062437168,"sku":"ZMca1g","price":45.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0879\/2784\/9264\/files\/ca1g-Square-cover.jpg?v=1778321422","url":"https:\/\/downpour.com\/products\/book-ca1g","provider":"Downpour","version":"1.0","type":"link"}