His child Norris B. Herndon eventually took over Atlanta Life, expanding the company's reach and increasing its profits. At the time of. About his early life Alonzo writes, "My mother was emancipated when I was seven years old and my brother Tom five years old. then he bought a plantation near tavares florida. Web site: http://www.chubb.com In 1865, Herndon along with his younger brother, his mother and her parents were released from slavery. He began by buying a failing mutual aid association in 1905, when the state of Georgia increased capital requirements for such businesses. Freed by the 13th Amendment, Herndon and his mother, younger brother, and maternal grandparents became sharecroppers. Du Bois. Why do you think the Herndon home displayed windows of Alonzo's heritage? In 1915, he ventured into Alabama, and the acquired another Georgia insurance company, Union Mutual, the largest black-owned insurer in the state. color:#f4c85e; Learn more about the foundation. Alonzo's marriage to Adrienne had a far-reaching impact on his life, greatly influencing his cultural and educational growth. At a very young age he worked as a laborer and peddler, helping his family to eke out a living in the harsh rural area. . He opened his own barbershop in Atlanta in 1886. In 1910, Herndons wife died unexpectedly. Alonzo Franklin Herndon was born on June 6, 1858, in Social Circle, Georgia, which is located in Walton County. Merritt, The Herndons: An Atlanta Family (Athens: University of Georgia Alonzo Herndon. Blake Sims. he had great clientelle with the money he was getting he was able to invest in real estate.he bought more than 100 rental houses and commercial property in auburn avenue in atlanta. By 1922 the company had more than $400,000 in assets. 191 Peachtree St #2500, Atlanta, GA 30303. color:#494bbc!important; border-bottom: 1px solid #f4c85e; Admired and respected by many, he was noted for his involvement in and support of local institutions and charities devoted to advancing African American business and community life. never acknowledged paternity. } Despite several crises in the industry and lean times generally, Atlanta Life under Herndons leadership survived and progressed into the next decades as a secure and prosperous business. Employees: 32,000 Because he possessed financial capital, Herndon was approached by two local ministers who asked him to help save their fledgling insurance company, the Atlanta Benevolent and Protective Association. .page blockquote{ Herndon was born into slavery as Alonzo Franklin Herndon on June 26, 1858. Alonzo Franklin Herndon (June 26, 1858 Walton County, Georgia July 21, 1927) was an African-American entrepreneur and businessman in Atlanta, Georgia. Nia Long Sparks Consent Debate Over 30-Year-Old Boyfriend As A Teen, INTERVIEW: Pastor Deitrick Haddon Responds To Christian Outrage Aimed At Beyonc And 'Satanic' GRAMMYs, Twitter Clowns Lori Harvey & Damson Idris Red Carpet Debut, Black Love: 12 Sexy Black Celebrity Couples, Amanda Seales Show 'LL Cool J Better Call Maury' | EPISODE 56, Black Driver Shot By Police While Sleeping In Grandmas Driveway, Bodycam Video Shows, Ben Stein Misses Aunt Jemima, The Large African American Woman Making Pancakes, Twitters Outraged, Will Smith Is Finally Making Jokes About Slapping Chris Rock, Twitter Salutes. Refer to each styles convention regarding the best way to format page numbers and retrieval dates. Holla:CJ@AtlantaFi.com. Your donation is fully tax-deductible. His full name is Alonzo Franklin Herndon. .upcoming-events li { .post_pagi a i:hover{ It also produced his only child, Norris, who succeeded him as chief executive of Atlanta Life Insurance Company. In 1910 Alonzo and Jessie Herndon built the Herndon Home which at the time was one of the largest mansions in Atlanta. .header-wrap-top .top-social-icon li a:hover{color:#f4c85e;} Now he was a great deal businessman. Herndon brought in experienced, professional management with a sound business plan that included an expanded, knowledgeable sales force and a new network of branch offices. Such burial associations were among the first types of thriving black business ventures after the Civil War, but a new Georgia law required all insurance companies to deposit $5,000 with the state as security against all claims. Alonzo Herndon made his fortune as an entrepreneur--someone who created and ran his own business. [citation needed]. Retrieved February 23, 2023 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/herndon-alonzo-franklin. In 1893, Herndon married Adrienne Elizabeth McNeil, a professor at Atlanta University, who influenced his cultural and educational growth. He was known for being a Entrepreneur. The firm grew rapidly in the 1920s, expanding its operations. Economic Dignity (Tuscaloosa: University of Alabama Press, 1990); Carole After six months Herndon purchased half interest in the shop, entering into a partnership with one of the few free Blacks operating barbering establishments since before the Civil War. She was sent adrift in the world with her two children and a corded bed and [a] few quilts. background:rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.18);} line-height:22px; Born into slavery, he became one of the first African American millionaires in the United States, first achieving success by owning and operating three large barber shops in the city that served prominent white men. Herndon was born into slavery and eventually became the city's first Black millionaire in the course of his lifetime. By Lestey Gist, The Gist of Freedom An African-American barber and entrepreneur, Alonzo Herndon was the founder and president of the Atlanta Life Insurance Company, one of the most successful black-owned insurance businesses in the nation. Alonzo Herndon made his fortune as an entrepreneur--someone who created and ran his own business. } He spent about five years in Jonesboro, where he developed a thriving business and a good reputation as a barber, before migrating to several other locales and eventually settling in Atlanta. !function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) Age AintWhat?! According to the Atlanta Journal, Herndon and his all-Black barbering staff were known from Richmond all the way to Mobile as the best barbers in the South. Following the racial practices of the era, the Black barbers served an exclusively white clientele composed of the citys leading lawyers, judges, politicians, and businessmen. .home .navigation .menu > li > a, .home header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after, .home .navigation ul li a, .home header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after,.navigation .menu > li > a, header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after, .navigation ul li a, header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after,.smaller .navigation .menu > li > a,.home header.smaller .navigation .menu > li > a,.home header.smaller #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after,.home.page-template-magazine-template .navigation .menu > li > a, .home.page-template-magazine-template header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:after{ In 1905, his property holdings were valued at nearly $325,000. Merged with two other firms and renamed the Atlanta Life Insurance Company, the firm prospered. Total Assets: $114.35 billion (1994) The publicity materials for the event claimed she was from an old French and Creole family in South Carolina, mentioning nothing about her race, and though she earned good reviews for a recital of Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra, no other roles came her way. !function(c,h,i,m,p){m=c.createElement(h),p=c.getElementsByTagName(h)[0],m.async=1,m.src=i,p.parentNode.insertBefore(m,p)}(document,"script","https://chimpstatic.com/mcjs-connected/js/users/6eb80f4e9d913d31aa4e9667f/bbe0b3a0e8ef645f34a40bece.js"); His barbershops windows were smashed in the Atlanta Race Massacre of 1906. As I have stated before, he was famous after establishing the Atlanta Life Insurance. Brother of Melissa Herndon; Delilah Herndon; Joan Herndon and Nellie Herndon. [1], Through his enterprises, Herndon became Atlanta's first black millionaire. His father was a white plantation farmer and owner of Herndons mother, Sophenie. header,.page header{ 3. They had one son together, Norris B. Herndon. Telephone: (908) 903-2000 border: 1px solid #f4c85e; color:#f4c85e; .home .navigation .menu > li > a:hover, .home .navigation ul li a:hover, .home header #main-menu-wrapper .menu-item-has-children > a:hover:after, fbq('track', 'PageView'); Public Co, 15 Mountain View Road, P.O. Herndon also invested in real estate, and then entered the insurance business. color:#5a5d5a; She was the decorator. United States, From Rags to Riches: The Story of Alonzo Herndon, Copyright 2023, Georgia Public Broadcasting. Associated With Eventually he acquired more than 100 houses, a large block of commercial property on Auburn Avenue, and a large estate in Tavares, Florida. They had to become entrepreneurs to rise out of the role of servant, farmer, or menial worker. All Rights Reserved. Explain the roles of Booker T. Washington, W. E. B. DuBois, and Alonzo Herndon in advancement of the rights of African Americans or Blacks in the New South Era. Finally in 1890 he opened his own place in the Markham Hotel, with five chairs. /*margin-digbar*/ Include how this persons life has affected your life. .flex-slider li .caption-content a{color:#fff;} Therefore, be sure to refer to those guidelines when editing your bibliography or works cited list. font-size:14px; Overcoming poverty and illiteracy, he had risen in his lifetime from slavery to become the wealthy head of a leading Black business that has survived into the twenty-first century and is consistently listed among the top Black financial companies as ranked by Black Enterprise magazine. In 1905 he purchased a failing mutual aid association, which he incorporated as the Atlanta Mutual Insurance Association. Alonzo Franklin Herndon was an African American entrepreneur who founded and was the first president of Atlanta Life Insurance Company. Alonzo F. Herndon is regarded by most historical accounts as Atlantas first Black millionaire, and certainly one of the wealthiest in the early 20th Century. 20042023 Georgia Humanities, University of Georgia Press. Despite several crises in the industry and lean times generally, Atlanta Life under Herndons leadership survived and progressed into the next decades as a secure and prosperous business. }); Five years later he was one of the original members of the W.E.B. Why do you think this would have been one of the only ways African Americans were able to obtain wealth and upper-class status? On his way to becoming Atlantas first black millionaire, Herndon amassed a fortune in real estate. Alonzo Herndon was active in a variety of economic and political causes. Opened in 1902, it was fitted with opulent furnishings, 25 luxury hair-cutting stations, and several private rooms with bathtubs and showers. One of the results of the Atlanta Race Massacre of 1906 was that Black leaders realized that W. E. B. He was considered. "Herndon was eager to capitalize on it.". Encyclopedia of World Biography. Why do you think this would have been one of the only ways African Americans were able to obtain wealth and upper-class status? That year Herndon changed the name of the company to Atlanta Life Insurance Company. His insurance business reported more than $400,000 in assets in 1922. The success of Herndons entrepreneurial endeavors not only helped build black Americas middle class, but transformed Sweet Auburn Avenue, which is where Atlanta Life was located, into a middle-class mecca for blacks. Do you know of anyone whose life has followed a pattern similar to that of Alonzo Herndon? .footer-wrapper .footer-copyright .copyright { . In 1905 he purchased a failing mutual aid association, which he incorporated as the Atlanta Mutual Insurance Association. Marker Text : Alonzo Herndon was born into slavery in Walton County, Georgia, in 1858. Merritt, Carole, The Herndons: An Atlanta Family, University of Georgia Press, 2002. }. With the Southern economy wrecked, she was forced to accept payment in molasses, potatoes, or other provisions in order to feed her sons. The company built respect in the financial communityand acquired more customersby buying out a series of shaky competitors. Herndons barbershop expanded to three shops, attracting Black Atlantas elite. In 1893, he was married to Adrienne Elizabeth McNeil, an Atlanta University drama instructor, scion of one of the citys most important black families and widely regarded as a great beauty. After a few months Herndon migrated to the town of Jonesboro, in Clayton County. In 1883 Herndon migrated to Atlanta, Georgia to continue in the barbering business in the largest city in the state. Regardless of the reason, his acquisition strategy made Atlanta Life one of the most successful black businesses in the nation by the 1920s. In 1905, his property holdings were valued at nearly $325,000. Tragically, Adrienne died the same year the house was completed after a bout with Addison's disease, a glandular condition. In 1905, his property holdings were valued at nearly $325,000. He was one of 25 people enslaved by his father, who never acknowledged paternity of him. Warren, New Jersey 07061 U.S.A. Born into slavery in 1858, in Walton County, Georgia; Alonzo was the son of Sophenie, an enslaved woman, and a white father, likely her enslaver, Frank Herndon, who was from a wealthy slaveholding family. 1858) represents an important piece of black history in Atlanta. Tweet. .post-share i.fa:hover, .footer-copyright .social-icon ul li a:hover, .header-bottom .social-icon ul li a:hover, .content .post-content .read-more a, a.more-link, ul li a:hover, #commentform #commentSubmit, ol.commentlist li .reply a, .th-widget-recent-post .th-recent-post h5 a:hover, .widget .twitter-user a, .standard-layout .format-link h2, .th_more_posts a#more_posts, .format-quote blockquote p:before, .widget .tagcloud a:hover, .content .post-content .description p a, .page-description p a, .multipage-links span, .content .navigation.post-navigation .nav-links a:hover, .content #main .pagination a:hover, .post-title h2:hover{color:#f4c85e;} background:#f4c85e; . 2. background:#f4c85e; h3.view{background:#0e0e0e;} On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. "The idea of a frieze was probably suggested to Adrienne by an interior decorator, but it would have fallen to Alonzo to capture the essence of his life in five images," wrote Merritt, director of the museum that the residence became many years later. . Lets explore some facts about Herndon and the impact he made, including one of the last physical monuments that symbolize his success, the Herndon House. That same year, he re-opened for business at an address of 66 Peachtree Street that would become his flagship enterprise for the next several decades. Alonzo Herndon was born on the 26th of June, 1858. Emancipated at the end of the Civil War (1861-65), he was sent away from his birthplace by his father. Civil Rights Movement Mid- to Late 20th Century Topics . Only a year later, he was invited to move his premises to one of the citys fanciest hotels, Markham House. His mother took him, his five-year-old brother, and a few quilts with her, and found work nearby as a day laborer. How does Alonzo Herdon embody the American dream? B. #main-menu-wrapper nav .mega .thunk-widget-menu .menu a:hover { As his business blossomed, so did his clientele and influence around the city. Herndon studied barbering, and owned and managed a string of barbershops in downtown Atlanta after the Civil War, one of which was considered to be the most elegant in the . n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; He also owned a hundred or so residential rental properties in the city. Birthdate: November 08, 1866. Discuss the traits and describe how each one contributed to Herndons amazing success. By 1904, Herndon owned three barber shops in Atlanta, advertising one of them as the largest and best barbershop in the region. He was born on June 26, 1858 and his birthplace is Georgia. } Herndon was a successful entrepreneur who made significant contributions to the civil rights of African-Americans as well as their continued higher education after high school. border-left: 5px solid #f4c85e; if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; Entrepreneur Alonzo Herndon were born on Saturday, birthstone is Pearl, the seaon was Summer in the Chinese year of , it is 174 days until Alonzo Herndon next birthday. When W. E. B. Herndon soon became a major philanthropist, investing his time and money into black causes, including co-founding the Niagara Movement, the forerunner of the NAACP. After his first wifes death in 1910, Herndon married Jessie Gillespie of Chicago, whose influence and support also aided her husband in his business and social life. line-height:48px; Subscribe to ournews alerts here, follow uson Twitterand like us onFacebook. After Herndons death in 1927, his son, Norris B. Herndon, took over the company and continued in his fathers philanthropic footsteps by contributing to the United Negro College Fund, Atlanta University, and the National Urban League. By now Herndon was worth a small fortune, having made shrewd investments in Atlanta real estate, including a commercial strip on Auburn Avenue, business hub of the city's African American community. background: #f4c85e; .footer-wrapper li, Its barbers were African American, but the establishment served a white clientele only, and quickly became one of the city's leading barbershops. , and several private rooms with bathtubs and showers Circle, Georgia to continue in the barbering business in nation! Brother of Melissa Herndon ; Delilah Herndon ; Joan Herndon and his mother, Sophenie Through his enterprises Herndon! City in the state to one of the original members of the Civil (. Amazing success was active in a variety of economic and political causes failing mutual aid association, which he as. 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