I was just made aware of another self-educated American that has piqued my interest. Madam C. J. Walker is credited with being the first woman to become a self-made millionaire. (link) Becoming a millionaire is an incredible accomplishment for anyone, but especially so for a black woman in the early 1900s. She must have been quite a woman.

The little I've found online is an incomplete portrait of her at best. I'm going to check out On Her Own Ground by A'Lelia Bundles to get a better understanding of her life. (link)

I did find a quote attributed to her in a couple of places that I love:

"There is no royal, flower-strewn path to success. And if there is, I have not found it for if I have accomplished anything in life, it is because I have been willing to work hard."
— Madam C. J. Walker