Customer Reviews

In the Black: A History of African Americans on Wall Street

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On Wall Street, you are remembered only for your last price, trade, or quarterly report. History is not dwelled on; today's young leaders probably wouldn't know JP Morgan, Muriel Siebert, or EF Hutton if they tripped over them. Nor would many even know the names Hornblower, First Harlem, Bache, Hutton, or Shearson. But, as of this writing, with African Americans leading both Merrill Lynch and Credit Suisse First Boston, it is nice (and necessary) to read a concise history of African Americans on Wall Street. Did you know that in the 1960's, Merrill Lynch, with 2500 fixed commission brokers, hired only 3 African American brokers? If not for this book, how many would know of Thorvald McGregor (MercerHicks) and Lawrence Lewis (Abraham & Co) , the first two African American Registered Reps in 1949? Or Abraham Cowing (FL Salomon); Howard Law grad Norman McGhee (McGhee and Company, the first black NASD securities firm); Philip Jenkins and Earle Fisher (Baruch Brothers) who started Special Markets; Lilla St John (Oppenheimer), the first black female broker in 1953; June Middleton (Cohen Simonson); Attorney Wylie H. Whisonant (Bache); Clarence B. Jones (Carter, Berlind, Sanford Weill, & Arthur Levitt); or Joseph L Searles (the first black full member of the NYSE in 1970)? The author, Gregory Bell, is the son of the Travers Bell, who founded the first black-owned member firm of the New York Stock Exchange, so he had deep access to the inside story of the black history of Wall Street. Although there were a couple of paragraphs that I might not have agreed with (the speculation that African Americans did not invest in equities in the 1950's because they were more concerned with basic civil rights than investing), the book remains an excellent, informative read. It is especially interesting when discussing the strategies of the early firms (selling mutual funds that required less financial sophistication); the trials of how companies were founded (For example, Daniels and Bell hatched their business plan after seeing The Wiz on Broadway, spent a year trying to get financing, and finally scored some needed fund after Myron Kandell wrote a story on their efforts and Nixon's SEC Chief William Casey pushed through an exemption to some rules for them and influenced his friends to invest in the firm), as well as when discussing the effect of Municipal policies to require that a percentage of their Public Finance business be done with minority owned vendors.

"I picked this book up after being attracted to its wonderful
book jacket and its words certainly lived up to my
expectations. As a young person, I had never heard of most
of the names in the book, and I am now filled with great
appreciation of the work they did to break barriers on Wall
Street. As a person of color, I felt it necessary to lear
about the pioneers of the past, and all they accomplished
despite the obstacles that hindered them. A necessary
book!!!"

I found the information in this book very informative and surprising that black participation in finance went back as far as it did. Stories of black stockbrokers and mutual fund salesmen in the 1950's to the investment bankers of today, records the slow but meaningful progress made on the Street in the last few decades. Hopefully, the progress will continue....

This book was an impulse buy for me, I have always had little interest in Wall Street but my son works in the securities industry so I thought I would read this for some background. I am very glad I did because I did not realize how deep African American history in the financial world is. I enjoyed the stories of people like Philip Jenkins and John Patterson, early pioneers who deserve greater recognition for their contributions. I think that this book is an important contribution of both African American and Wall Street history and does a good job of illuminating aspects about the history of finance that went unrecognized for far too long.

Mr. Bell's choice of subject is terrific. as a history major, i am always looking for new and enlightening perspectives; and In The Black provides just that. this book is bound to ignite more discussion and research on a historical subject that up until now, has barely been touched. the pioneers that Bell writes about should have a more permanent place in history...and this book undoubtedly marks the first step towards much overdue recognition. a MUST HAVE for your collection.

I picked this book up after reading the NY Times last Sunday and thought it was wonderful. I do agree with the review, and would have like to seen more stories about people like Stan O'Neal. Because of that I was tempted to give it four stars but in the end I gave it five. I think it was well done, tough to read at times, but worth it in the end.

Great Book by an author who was born into the game and has the unique abilty to show blacks involvement with Wallstreet since day one.

You never know where you're going unless you know where you came from! I just started the book, and I wish my finance professors had incorporated this into the otherwise impeccable curriculum at Clark Atlanta. Very interesting read. Every person on wall street should read it, it's not only black history but AMERICAN history.

This book fills in the missing pages of Wall Street's History. It documents how African-Americans overcame racism and other barriers to become successful in the financial securities industry. This should be part of every business school's curriculum.

In The Black is the great story of how African Americans broke through and fought against the racial barriers of Wall Street. From the beginnings of black-owned firms like Daniels & Bell to the Wall Street of today, this book kept my interest. It is rare to find such a well-written book on such a specific topics, but the Black Enterprise name consistently produces quality material.