{"product_id":"the-merchant-prince-of-black-chicago-anthony-overton-and-the-building-of-a-financial-empire-9780252043062","title":"The Merchant Prince of Black Chicago: Anthony Overton and the Building of a Financial Empire","description":"Born to enslaved parents, Anthony Overton became one of the leading African American entrepreneurs of the twentieth century. Overton's Chicago-based empire ranged from personal care products and media properties to insurance and finance. Yet, despite success and acclaim as the first business figure to win the NAACP's Spingarn Medal, Overton remains an enigma.\u003cp\u003eRobert E. Weems Jr. restores Overton to his rightful place in American business history. Dispelling stubborn myths, he traces Overton's rise from mentorship by Booker T. Washington, through early failures, to a fateful move to Chicago in 1911. There, Overton started a popular magazine aimed at African American women that helped him dramatically grow his cosmetics firm. 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.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRevealing and panoramic, \u003ci\u003eThe Merchant Prince of Black Chicago\u003c\/i\u003e weaves the fascinating life story of an African American trailblazer through the eventful history of his times.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Weems Jr, Robert E.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/01\/2020\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Illinois Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780252043062\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 248\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.05lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.10h x 6.10w x 0.90d","brand":"Robert E. Weems Jr","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39364466081867,"sku":"9780252043062","price":110.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0021\/1697\/6715\/products\/img_67ac208a-9c3f-4b6e-9aff-b6a8f0cbe41b.jpg?v=1621354025","url":"https:\/\/blackbookstore.com\/products\/the-merchant-prince-of-black-chicago-anthony-overton-and-the-building-of-a-financial-empire-9780252043062","provider":"Black Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}