[LEWIS, Abraham Lincoln]Biblio.com
Printed Life Insurance Policy Certificate: The Afro-American Life Insurance Company of Jacksonville Florida… Industrial Whole Life with Payment for Accidental Injuries and Death… Insured: General A. Burkette Beneficiary: Mary Burkette
1949518371Jacksonville Florida: The Afro-American Life Insurance Company 1949. Softcover. Near Fine. Original printed life insurance policy certificate issued March 21 1949. Large single sheet measuring 11" x 15" printed on both sides text in black within decorative border printed in green. Prints details about premiums and benefits "Conditions Privileges and Limitations" details about the policy holder General A Burkette and beneficiary Mary Burkette etc. Signed in holograph facsimile by James H. Lewis son of one of the company founders and former President of the company Abraham Lincoln Lewis. Verso prints charts of extended term insurance and premiums.<br /> <br /> Small tears at old folds a near fine example of a fragile ephemeral item. Abraham Lincoln Lewis 1865-1947 African-American businessman was one of the founders of the Afro-American Industrial and Benefit Association which became the Afro-American Life Insurance Company in Jacksonville Florida in 1901. It was the first insurance company in Florida and one of the largest black-owned businesses in Florida. "As the oldest life insurance company in Florida and one of the most successful black businesses in the state it helped thousands of blacks over the years. The importance of that insurance company… cannot be underestimated. According to the 'Encyclopedia of Southern Culture' the insurance companies established by African-Americans and catering to them 'formed the heart of black financial networks the cultural beginnings of which can be traced to mutual benefit societies and the church'" McCarthy African-American Sites in Florida' p. 52; c.f. Low Encyclopedia of Black America p. 207. Lewis helped found the National Negro Insurance Association and the exclusive African-American vacation spot American Beach on Amelia Island and was Florida's first black millionaire. "By 1902 the Afro-American Life Insurance Company was the cornerstone of Black economic development in the city… and grew into one of the most successful minority owned insurance companies in the country. He was a close friend of Booker T. Washington and helped Washington establish the Negro Business League…" Bartley Keeping the Faith p. 10. The company closed in 1990. The Afro-American Life Insurance Company unknown
