Marjorie Joyner

Biography Early life and education Born in 1896 in Monterey, Virginia, Joyner was the daughter of George Emmanuel Stewart, a teacher and Annie Stewart (née Daugherty). In 1912, aged 16, Joyner relocated to Chicago, Illinois to live with her mother. After arriving to Chicago, Joyner received a certificate for dramatic art and expression from Chicago Musical College in 1914. Joyner later met Madam C. J. Walker, an African American beauty entrepreneur, and the owner of a cosmetic empire. Joyner worked for Walker as a sales representative. In 1920, Joyner oversaw 200 of Madam Walker's beauty schools as the national adviser. Joyner taught some 15,000 stylists and served as an instructor to coaching Walker's sales representatives door-to-door. Her patent for this design, (U.S. pat. #1,693,515) established her as the first African American woman to receive a patent. This claim is disputed by some who say that Sarah E. Goode was the first African American woman to hold a patent. It is sometimes falsely cited that Joyner was the original inventor of this type of the machine, called the permanent wave, or perm. Joyner's design was an alternative version of Karl Nessler's groundbreaking invention, invented in England during the late 19th century and patented in London in 1909 and again in the United States in 1925. Joyner's design was popular in salons with both African American and white women. The patent was credited to Walker's company and she received almost no money for it.

Personal life and death Joyner was married once and had two children. On April 4, 1916, aged 19, she married podiatrist Robert E. Joyner. They remained married until his death in 1973. Together, they had two daughters, Anne and Barbara Joyner. On October 24, 1990, Joyner's 95th birthday, she was honored by the city of Chicago, proclaiming her birthday Marjorie Stewart Joyner Day within the city. Currently, her papers reside in the Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection of African-American History and Literature at the Chicago Public Library.