African-American real estate entrepreneur credited as the "Father of Harlem." Born in Westfield, Massachusetts, to Philip and Annie (Ryans) Payton, his father was a well-known local barber and began teaching his son that trade from an early age. Philip graduated from local schools and attended Livingston College in North Carolina for one year, when an injury caused him to drop out and return home to resume the trade he had learned as a youth. He married soon after, on November 20, 1900, in Westfield to Maggie Lee, a native of Raleigh, North Carolina who was working as a domestic in town.
Disgruntled and ambitious, he was envious of the accomplishments of his siblings (two brothers attended Yale University). Philip set off the following year to New York City to make something of his life. For a short time, he worked many different jobs, finally ending up as a janitor in a real estate office in Harlem. He soon became disgruntled with the way white tenement owners regarded and treated their African American tenants.
He began advertising services and opened an office specializing in the management of "colored tenements." As a twist of fate, he was handed an entire tenement to manage, and from that point on, his business grew in rapid progression; by 1903, he managed a dozen buildings and became a prominent and well-known member of the African American community.
He was closely associated with such prominent men as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois. Through these relationships, he gained access to some of the most powerful and influential men in The United States. In 1904, he founded The African American Real Estate Company, which offered tenement owners a guaranteed dependable monthly income at a premium above the comparable rents paid by their white tenants. It was an immeasurable success, and although the corporation was besieged with lawsuits and eventually was dissolved (giving way to his new venture, The Philip A. Payton Jr. Company), it served, in a very short time, to effect a significant social and racial transition in Harlem, and set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. He became a key source and adviser to both the media and politicians on the subject of Harlem Real Estate, and was often interviewed on that subject.
He died of cancer at his summer home in New Jersey on August 29, 1917. The Philip A. Payton Jr. company continued operating through his sister's husband, William H. Wortham, for another two decades.
Disgruntled and ambitious, he was envious of the accomplishments of his siblings (two brothers attended Yale University). Philip set off the following year to New York City to make something of his life. For a short time, he worked many different jobs, finally ending up as a janitor in a real estate office in Harlem. He soon became disgruntled with the way white tenement owners regarded and treated their African American tenants.
He began advertising services and opened an office specializing in the management of "colored tenements." As a twist of fate, he was handed an entire tenement to manage, and from that point on, his business grew in rapid progression; by 1903, he managed a dozen buildings and became a prominent and well-known member of the African American community.
He was closely associated with such prominent men as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois. Through these relationships, he gained access to some of the most powerful and influential men in The United States. In 1904, he founded The African American Real Estate Company, which offered tenement owners a guaranteed dependable monthly income at a premium above the comparable rents paid by their white tenants. It was an immeasurable success, and although the corporation was besieged with lawsuits and eventually was dissolved (giving way to his new venture, The Philip A. Payton Jr. Company), it served, in a very short time, to effect a significant social and racial transition in Harlem, and set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. He became a key source and adviser to both the media and politicians on the subject of Harlem Real Estate, and was often interviewed on that subject.
He died of cancer at his summer home in New Jersey on August 29, 1917. The Philip A. Payton Jr. company continued operating through his sister's husband, William H. Wortham, for another two decades.
African-American real estate entrepreneur credited as the "Father of Harlem." Born in Westfield, Massachusetts, to Philip and Annie (Ryans) Payton, his father was a well-known local barber and began teaching his son that trade from an early age. Philip graduated from local schools and attended Livingston College in North Carolina for one year, when an injury caused him to drop out and return home to resume the trade he had learned as a youth. He married soon after, on November 20, 1900, in Westfield to Maggie Lee, a native of Raleigh, North Carolina who was working as a domestic in town.
Disgruntled and ambitious, he was envious of the accomplishments of his siblings (two brothers attended Yale University). Philip set off the following year to New York City to make something of his life. For a short time, he worked many different jobs, finally ending up as a janitor in a real estate office in Harlem. He soon became disgruntled with the way white tenement owners regarded and treated their African American tenants.
He began advertising services and opened an office specializing in the management of "colored tenements." As a twist of fate, he was handed an entire tenement to manage, and from that point on, his business grew in rapid progression; by 1903, he managed a dozen buildings and became a prominent and well-known member of the African American community.
He was closely associated with such prominent men as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois. Through these relationships, he gained access to some of the most powerful and influential men in The United States. In 1904, he founded The African American Real Estate Company, which offered tenement owners a guaranteed dependable monthly income at a premium above the comparable rents paid by their white tenants. It was an immeasurable success, and although the corporation was besieged with lawsuits and eventually was dissolved (giving way to his new venture, The Philip A. Payton Jr. Company), it served, in a very short time, to effect a significant social and racial transition in Harlem, and set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. He became a key source and adviser to both the media and politicians on the subject of Harlem Real Estate, and was often interviewed on that subject.
He died of cancer at his summer home in New Jersey on August 29, 1917. The Philip A. Payton Jr. company continued operating through his sister's husband, William H. Wortham, for another two decades.
Disgruntled and ambitious, he was envious of the accomplishments of his siblings (two brothers attended Yale University). Philip set off the following year to New York City to make something of his life. For a short time, he worked many different jobs, finally ending up as a janitor in a real estate office in Harlem. He soon became disgruntled with the way white tenement owners regarded and treated their African American tenants.
He began advertising services and opened an office specializing in the management of "colored tenements." As a twist of fate, he was handed an entire tenement to manage, and from that point on, his business grew in rapid progression; by 1903, he managed a dozen buildings and became a prominent and well-known member of the African American community.
He was closely associated with such prominent men as Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. Dubois. Through these relationships, he gained access to some of the most powerful and influential men in The United States. In 1904, he founded The African American Real Estate Company, which offered tenement owners a guaranteed dependable monthly income at a premium above the comparable rents paid by their white tenants. It was an immeasurable success, and although the corporation was besieged with lawsuits and eventually was dissolved (giving way to his new venture, The Philip A. Payton Jr. Company), it served, in a very short time, to effect a significant social and racial transition in Harlem, and set the stage for the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. He became a key source and adviser to both the media and politicians on the subject of Harlem Real Estate, and was often interviewed on that subject.
He died of cancer at his summer home in New Jersey on August 29, 1917. The Philip A. Payton Jr. company continued operating through his sister's husband, William H. Wortham, for another two decades.
Bio by: James Bianco
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