November 27, 1928 Marjorie Stewart Joyner received patent number 1,693,515 for her invention of the permanent wave machine which could be used to curl or straighten hair by wrapping rods above the person’s head and then cooking them to set the hair. This method allowed hairstyles to last several days. The machine was popular with African American and white women. Joyner was born October 24, 1896 in Monterey, Virginia and in 1916 became the first African American to graduate from A.B. Molar Beauty School in Chicago, Illinois. After graduating, she went to work for Madam C. J. Walker, overseeing 200 of her beauty schools as the national advisor. As a result, Joyner’s invention was credited to Madam Walker’s company and she received almost no money for it. In 1945, Joyner co-founded the United Beauty School Owners and Teachers Association and in 1973, at the age of 77, she received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Bethune-Cookman College. Joyner died December 7, 1994.
