Mitchell High School (Tennessee)
Encyclopedia
Mitchell High School, also known as Mitchell Road High School, is a public 9-12 school in Memphis, Tennessee
, located at 658 W. Mitchell Road. Its enrollment of 1074 students is 99.4% Black, 0.4% White and 0.2% Hispanic. The school is secured by metal detectors and a posted police officer.
School Name:
Joseph E. Walker
, noted physician, banker, businessman, civic and religious leader in Memphis, was born in the cotton fields near Tillman, Mississippi, in 1880 and rose to become one of the most successful African Americans of his time. Walker overcame a background of poverty and worked his way through college and medical school. From 1906 to 1919 he practiced medicine in Indianola, Mississippi
.
In 1912 Walker was elected president of Delta Penny Savings Bank and in 1917 president of Mississippi Life Insurance Company, which moved to Memphis in 1920. In 1923 Walker, A. W. Willis, and Dr. J. T. Wilson established Universal Life Insurance Company in Memphis. Under Walker's leadership, Universal Life grew to become one of the largest African-American-owned insurance companies in the country. In 1946, along with his son, A. Maceo Walker, Dr. Walker founded Tri-State Bank of Memphis and was named the bank's first president.
Active in politics, Walker was a leader in the Democratic Party. He was also a noted philanthropist and civic leader and helped finance the South Memphis Walker Homes Subdivision which bears his name. He organized the Memphis Negro Chamber of Commerce in 1926, which published directories of black businesses, now a valuable resource to scholars studying early Memphis black commercial development.
In 1926 Walker was elected president of the National Negro Insurance Association
. In 1939 he was elected president of the National Negro Business League
. During the 1930s, Jet
magazine listed him as one of the "10 most Influential Negroes in America."
Walker groomed his son, A. Maceo Walker
(1909-1994), to succeed him in the organizations he established. Maceo Walker was elected president and chairman of Universal Life in 1952 and served in this capacity for decades. He also had a long tenure as president and chair of Tri-State Bank. When he stepped down as president of Universal Life in 1983, his daughter, Patricia Walker-Shaw
(1939-1985), became president of Universal Life and served in this capacity until her death in 1985. Shaw was the first woman to become president of the National Insurance Association
in July 1983. Shaw's only child, Harold Shaw Jr., currently works at Universal Life, making him the fourth generation of his family to serve this company.
http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/imagegallery.php?EntryID=W003
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, located at 658 W. Mitchell Road. Its enrollment of 1074 students is 99.4% Black, 0.4% White and 0.2% Hispanic. The school is secured by metal detectors and a posted police officer.
School Name:
Joseph E. Walker
Joseph Edison Walker
Joseph Edison Walker was a leading African American businessman who founded the Universal Life Insurance Company and Tri-State Bank, both of Memphis, Tennessee.-Biography:...
, noted physician, banker, businessman, civic and religious leader in Memphis, was born in the cotton fields near Tillman, Mississippi, in 1880 and rose to become one of the most successful African Americans of his time. Walker overcame a background of poverty and worked his way through college and medical school. From 1906 to 1919 he practiced medicine in Indianola, Mississippi
Indianola, Mississippi
Indianola is a city in Sunflower County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 12,066 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Sunflower County.-History:...
.
In 1912 Walker was elected president of Delta Penny Savings Bank and in 1917 president of Mississippi Life Insurance Company, which moved to Memphis in 1920. In 1923 Walker, A. W. Willis, and Dr. J. T. Wilson established Universal Life Insurance Company in Memphis. Under Walker's leadership, Universal Life grew to become one of the largest African-American-owned insurance companies in the country. In 1946, along with his son, A. Maceo Walker, Dr. Walker founded Tri-State Bank of Memphis and was named the bank's first president.
Active in politics, Walker was a leader in the Democratic Party. He was also a noted philanthropist and civic leader and helped finance the South Memphis Walker Homes Subdivision which bears his name. He organized the Memphis Negro Chamber of Commerce in 1926, which published directories of black businesses, now a valuable resource to scholars studying early Memphis black commercial development.
In 1926 Walker was elected president of the National Negro Insurance Association
National Insurance Association
The National Insurance Association is the largest organization representing African American owned and operated insurance companies.-History:...
. In 1939 he was elected president of the National Negro Business League
National Negro Business League
The National Negro Business League was an American organization founded in Boston, Massachusetts in 1900 by Booker T. Washington, with the support of Andrew Carnegie...
. During the 1930s, Jet
Jet (magazine)
Jet is an American weekly marketed toward African-American readers, founded in 1951 by John H. Johnson of Johnson Publishing Company in Chicago, Illinois...
magazine listed him as one of the "10 most Influential Negroes in America."
Walker groomed his son, A. Maceo Walker
A. Maceo Walker
A. Maceo Walker was an African-American businessman who served as president of the Universal Life Insurance Company of Memphis, Tennessee.-Biography:...
(1909-1994), to succeed him in the organizations he established. Maceo Walker was elected president and chairman of Universal Life in 1952 and served in this capacity for decades. He also had a long tenure as president and chair of Tri-State Bank. When he stepped down as president of Universal Life in 1983, his daughter, Patricia Walker-Shaw
Patricia Walker-Shaw
Patricia Walker-Shaw served as President of the Universal Life Insurance Company of Memphis, Tennessee.-Biography:Patricia Walker-Shaw was born Lily Patricia Walker as the eldest of three children born to A...
(1939-1985), became president of Universal Life and served in this capacity until her death in 1985. Shaw was the first woman to become president of the National Insurance Association
National Insurance Association
The National Insurance Association is the largest organization representing African American owned and operated insurance companies.-History:...
in July 1983. Shaw's only child, Harold Shaw Jr., currently works at Universal Life, making him the fourth generation of his family to serve this company.
External links
Ronald A. Walter, Memphishttp://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/imagegallery.php?EntryID=W003