Madame C.J. Walker Museum/WERD Studio

The Madam C. J. Walker Museum and WERD Radio complex in the Prince Hall Mason Building stand as a historic beacon showcasing two early African American businesses in Atlanta’s Sweet Auburn Business District and their indelible impact expanding beyond the community. The Madam C. J. Walker Museum/WERD Radio is dedicated to celebrating the life and contributions of Madame CJ Walker, a pioneer in African American entrepreneurship and activism, as well as the pivotal role of WERD, the first Black-owned radio station in America and transports visitors back to the vibrant black neighborhood of the 1940s and ’50s, preserving its culture and history.

The Madam C. J. Walker Museum is in an original Madame C. J. Walker beauty shop from the 1950’s. Not only does the museum exhibit artifacts such as early haircare tools and irons for pressing hair, but it also pays tribute to Madame C. J. Walker, an early 20th-century woman who became one of the first self-made female African American millionaires. Housed in the same building as the Madam C. J. Walker Museum, WERD Radio was the first radio station in the United States owned and operated by African Americans. It was a venue for black music at a time when those musicians were seldom if ever, played on white-owned stations and played a vital role in disseminating messages from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) was headquartered in the building and WERD Radio aired his announcements by lowering a microphone from the station to Dr. King’s office below.