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Our Blog Posts
Learn the history of LaVilla and historic Black Wall Streets,
CRE crowdfunding, the past and future of wealth
building and historic revitalization.


Lost Fortunes: The Wealthy Black Women Who Built Empires Before the Civil Rights Act—And Where Their Wealth Went (Part 11/28, Josephine Baker)
"Surely the day will come when color means nothing more than the skin tone, when religion is seen uniquely as a way to speak one's soul;...
Dr. V. Brooks Dunbar
Feb 234 min read


Lost Fortunes: The Wealthy Black Women Who Built Empires Before the Civil Rights Movement—And Where Their Wealth Went (Part 4 of 28, Elizabeth Keckley)
Among the earliest wealth builders in the U.S. is a compassionate confidant, author, and fashion entrepreneur named Elizabeth Keckley.
Dr. V. Brooks Dunbar
Feb 44 min read


Lost Fortunes: The Wealthy Black Women Who Built Empires Before the Civil Rights Movement—And Where Their Wealth Went (Part 3 of 28, Bridget "Biddy" Mason)
The early wealth builders were fearless, politically and socially savvy, fearless Black women. Meet Bridget "Biddy" Mason of Los Angeles.
Dr. V. Brooks Dunbar
Feb 34 min read


Lost Fortunes: The Wealthy Black Women Who Built Empires Before the Civil Rights Movement—And Where Their Wealth Went (Part 2 of 28, Mary Ellen Pleasant)
The early wealth builders were fearless, savvy, Black women. Meet Mary Ellen Pleasant and the rise and fall of a multimillionaire's fortune.
Dr. V. Brooks Dunbar
Feb 23 min read
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