In the vein of The Engineers Wife and Carolina Built an inspiring novel based on the remarkable true story of Virginias Black Wall Street and the indomitable Maggie Lena Walker the daughter of a formerly enslaved woman who became the first Black woman to establish and preside over a bank in the United States.Maggie Lena Walker was ambitious and unafraid. Her childhood in 19th-century Virginia helping her mother with her laundry service opened her eyes to the overwhelming discrepancy between the Black residents and her mothers affluent white clients. She vowed to not only secure the same kind of home and finery for herself but she would also help others in her community achieve the same. With her single-minded determination Maggie buckled down and went from schoolteacher to secretary-treasurer of the Independent Order of St. Luke founder of a newspaper a bank and a department store where Black customers were treated with respect. With the help of influential friends like W.E.B. DuBois and Mary McLeod she revolutionized Richmond in ways that are still felt today. Now her rich full story is revealed in this stirring and intimate novel.
