This Day in History: 1903-04-27

African-American businesswoman and teacher Maggie Lena Walker becomes the first African-American woman to charter a bank and serve as its president in the United States. Later Walker agreed to serve as chairman of the board of directors when the bank merged with two other Richmond banks to become The Consolidated Bank and Trust Company, which grew to serve generations of Richmonders as an African-American owned institution. As a leader, Walker achieved successes with the vision to make tangible improvements in the way of life for African Americans. Learn more.