Walker to a Stranger

For African Americans, the early 20th century brought Jim Crow Laws that thwarted intellectual opportunity and economic access for the black community. Maggie Lena Walker was one limb on the legendary cohort of southern African American leaders born during or after the Civil War who viewed themselves as shapers of a fresh community culture. In the face of socioeconomic oppression, Walker and the Independent Order of St. Luke confronted economic, race, and gender discrimination by providing security to the African American community. One of those communities was Jackson Ward, which hosted the most affluent African American population in the early twentieth century and served as the epicenter of black culture and the primary business district for Richmond, Virginia. Maggie Walker’s home, in the heart of the ward, was named a National Historic Site in 1978 and currently protects the restored and originally furnished home of this pioneer for black economic empowerment.

The Maggie L. Walker National Historic Site was opened to the public in 1985 as a commemorative landmark and a celebratory exhibit to the life and works of Walker. Her admirers are able to experience her life by touring her fully preserved home under the provision of a tour guide. I was fortunate to experience the museum in a small group where curiosity among the tour-goers was kindled into interactive discussion with the guide about the ethnographic significance of her home. The museum and its guided tour exists to honor one of Richmond’s most admired residents, tell a narrative about her personal life and the times, and educate the public about not only Maggie L.Walker but also the struggles and victories in the causes she supported. It stands as a testament to her desire to inspire the black community, develop educational opportunities, and facilitate a beneficial environment for youth.

As a precursor to the museum tour, we were told that more than 90% of the furniture is original, unmoved, and in the exact condition that Maggie Walker had left it at her death in 1934. This fact allows museum goers to see the home through the eyes of Mrs. Walker as she did in the late 1920s and early 1930s before her death. Immediately through the front door is the front parlor where Mrs. Walker entertained guests, seemingly “an appropriate place to start the day with you” as the guide would announce. Tourists are immediately neck deep in veneration for Mrs. Walker’s legacy when the tour guide explains where they stand. This spot served as the formal social space of the house where Walker entertained the many illustrious guests she befriended as she became a crux in civic engagement, civil rights, and the struggle for economic equality. Standing next to a chair where George Washington Carver and Mary Church Terrell may have shared a drink with Maggie Walker struck a nerve in me for reverence and respect. The presence of the extravagant chandelier, grand piano, vases, and fine china that adorned this room reportedly served Mrs. Walker’s intentional goal of inspiring the black community. Also featured in the front parlor was a sofa chair turned wheelchair with a retractable desk that facilitated her desire to write and work even through her paralysis in old age. This room sets the stage for the tour by cultivating a sense of awe and respect for the life and works of such a brilliant and determined woman who rose from poverty to social prominence even in the face of opposition.

The tour took a left into Walker’s personal library, the “most revealing room in the home” which encapsulates her persona with its furniture, posters, and book collection. This small room served as her office and work area where she studied books and wrote speeches, lectures, and public addresses. The collection of six hundred worn and battered books about economics, African American history, business, education, and politics mirror her interests and motivations and an activist and businesswoman. A poster titled “101 Prominent Colored People” hangs over her work desk and serves a very specific purpose. According to the guide, “just as Mrs. Walker wanted to inspire people with her home, she needed inspiration herself. So what better way than to have all the people you love and admire looking down on you as you work?” Ironically, the No. 94 slot on the poster of 101 prominent colored people was occupied by none other than Mrs. Maggie Walker (done alphabetically not by rank).

 

The museum featured a room that was formerly an outdoor porch which Walker had enclosed and turned into a recreation room for her two sons and their friends. The room featured a record player/radio, mini bar, and card table where Walker allowed neighborhood kids to have a few drinks, listen to music, and play cards. This space was referred to by the guide as a “man cave” where Maggie Walker facilitated fun in the safety of her home so that kids would not turn to the streets. Her intentionality in this area was a concrete display of her desire to build a legacy of responsible, educated, and civilized youth.

Her bedroom is decorated with crosses, paintings, and other religious artifacts like the family bible that epitomize her Christian faith and religious devotion which helped shape her core values. The museum even highlights Walker’s struggles and tragedies from her paralysis to the accidental murder of her husband in a second floor bathroom at the hand of her son Russell. Through her struggles and tragedies she overcame and adapted. The impressive nature of the Maggie L. Walker mansion symbolizes her transcendence from poverty to prominence. In spite of humble upbringings, Maggie Walker gained national recognition and respect as a female entrepreneur and African American social leader. Improvements in the lives of African Americans and women were made visible by the ideas of her mind, the nerve in her heart, and the toil of her hands. Each room in the museum represents a synthesis of these three ideals.