A'Lelia Walker  (June 6, 1885 – August 17, 1931) was an  American   businesswoman  and patron of the arts. She was the only surviving child of  Madam C.J. Walker , popularly credited as being the first self-made woman millionaire in the United States and one of the first African American millionaires. Early life A'Lelia Walker was born Lelia McWilliams in  Vicksburg, Mississippi , in 1885, the daughter of Moses McWilliams and the woman later known as Madam C. J. Walker. Her father died when she was 2. Her mother later married Charles Joseph Walker, a newspaper advertising salesman, and became an independent hairdresser and retailer of cosmetic creams. A'Lelia grew up in  St. Louis, Missouri  and attended  Knoxville College  in Tennessee before entering the family business. [1]