The 15 Coolest Female Firsts in History

America’s first self-made female millionaire

Sarah Breedlove, born to former slaves in 1867, began advertising a hair-growth tonic she claimed had regrown her own lost locks.

Known as Madam C. J. Walker, she was an African American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and a political and social activist. She was considered the wealthiest African American businesswoman and wealthiest self-made woman in America at the time of her death in 1919.