William Nickerson, Jr.
| William Nickerson Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 26, 1879 nr.Coldspring, Texas, USA |
| Died | November 14, 1945 (aged 66) |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Bishop College |
| Occupation | Businessman, publisher |
| Known for | Founder of Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company |
William Nickerson Jr. was a prominent Los Angeles-based businessman and founder of Golden State Mutual Life Insurance Company, which at one time was the largest black-owned business west of the Mississippi.
Nickerson was born on a farm near Coldspring in San Jacinto County, Texas on January 26, 1879, the son of William Nickerson and Emma Poole. After graduating from high school, he attended Bishop College in Marshall, Texas where he studied economics. Later he received a teacher’s certificate at Prairie View Industrial and Normal School (later Prairie View A&M University) in Prairie View, Texas and subsequently taught public school for four years in San Jacinto County.
On April 15, 1905, a chance encounter would forever change his life. On his way to breakfast, Nickerson passed a well-lit and inviting restaurant. Because of segregation, it was restricted to whites only. Instead, Nickerson was forced to eat in a dimly lit, unsanitary restaurant with poor service that catered to African Americans. He wondered if there were any modern facilities that could be patronized by blacks. His thoughts were interrupted by a man who offered Nickerson the opportunity to become an insurance agent.
Nickerson accepted the job, which was as an underwriter for the Dallas-based Southern Mutual Benefit Association, an insurance company. After a slow, but steady increase in clients, Nickerson became one of the top agents at the company. However, when Southern Mutual was taken over by American National Insurance of Galveston, Texas, this disrupted the firm which prompted Nickerson to consider another career. He took and passed the civil service examination to become a mail carrier. Despite the encouragement of his wife to take advantage of the relative security of civil service, Nickerson instead chose to continue with insurance, which by now had become a passion for him.
Unfortunately, a labor dispute developed between management and the agents at the re-organized company. As a result, Nickerson and several other agents at the firm decided that greater opportunities were to be gained outside of the company. On July 1, 1908, Nickerson left Southern Mutual. He along with J. B. Grisby, Forrest T. Perkins, London Franks, W. H. Parker and C. H. Green received a charter from the state of Texas to form the American Mutual Benefit Association. Their offices were located at 409½ Milam Street in Houston, Texas. Nickerson served as secretary of the new company. W. B. Cogle served as president, Perkins as vice president, and Franks as treasurer of American Mutual. Their company aggressively sold "fraternal" insurance to Texas blacks and quickly grew to one of the largest black-owned businesses west of the Mississippi.
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