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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to recognize the life and legacy of Annie
4Minerva Turnbo Malone, an African American entrepreneur and
5philanthropist during the early 20th century; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Annie Malone was born in Metropolis on August 9,
71869, the tenth of 11 children of Robert and Isabella Cook
8Turnbo; she attended school in Illinois but especially enjoyed
9fashioning her own and her sister's hair, becoming aware of
10differences in hair texture; by 1889, she had developed her
11own scalp and hair products that she demonstrated and sold
12from a buggy throughout Illinois; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Annie Malone's business growth led her to St.
14Louis, Missouri in 1902, which at the time held the
15fourth-largest population of African Americans; she
16copyrighted her Poro brand beauty products, and through her
17business model that used local sales agents, she offered
18career opportunities and economic independence to African
19American women at a time when little was available; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Committed to community building and social
21welfare, Annie Malone founded Poro College in 1917, a complex
22that included her business offices, manufacturing operation,

 

 

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1and training center, as well as facilities for civic,
2religious, and social functions; many local and national
3organizations, including the National Negro Business League,
4were housed in the facility or used it for business functions;
5by 1926, the college employed 175 people and had franchised
6outlets in North and South America, Africa and the
7Philippines; by 1930, she had moved from Missouri and settled
8on Chicago's South Side; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Annie Malone is recorded as the first Black woman
10millionaire in the U. S. based on reports of $14 million in
11assets held in 1920 from her beauty and cosmetic enterprises;
12and
 
13    WHEREAS, Annie Malone served as board president of the St.
14Louis Colored Orphan's Home from 1919 to 1943; she donated the
15first $10,000 to build the orphanage's new building in 1919;
16during the 1920s, her philanthropy included financing the
17education of two full-time students in every historically
18black college and university; her $25,000 donation to Howard
19University was among the largest gifts the university had
20received by a private donor of African descent; and
 
21    WHEREAS, Annie Malone was treated for a stroke at
22Provident Hospital in Chicago on May 10, 1957, where she died;
23at the time of her death, Poro beauty colleges were in

 

 

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1operation in more than 30 U.S. cities; and
 
2    WHEREAS, Annie Malone's memory is honored in St. Louis
3with the Annie Malone Children and Family Service Center whose
4mission is to improve the quality of life for children,
5families, elderly, and the community by providing social
6services, educational programs, advocacy, and
7entrepreneurship; therefore, be it
 
8    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
9HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
10we recognize the life and legacy of Annie Minerva Turnbo
11Malone, an African American entrepreneur and philanthropist
12during the early 20th century; and be it further
 
13    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
14presented to the family of Annie Malone as a symbol of our
15respect and esteem.