Anna Johnson Dupree was a Houston businesswoman and philanthropist. Dupree was born into a poor family who picked cotton to make a living. She was the great-grandchild of a slaveholder and the grandchild of former slaves, and stories she heard about life in slavery had a deep effect on her. Dupree’s mother never allowed her to complain about their poverty, and remined her that there were other people ‘worse off’ than she was. When she was a young woman, she earned a living as a domestic worker. She was noticed for her great sewing skills by Zula Kyle, who later hired her to work for her in Houston in 1911. After working successfully as a beautician and manicurist, Dupree opened her own beauty salon in 1936. Her and her husband invested in other businesses, including the Eldorado Ballroom which was one of the first black clubs and entertainment venues in Houston, a pharmacy, men’s clothing store, and a nightclub. Dupree donated a generous gift of $20,000 for the construction of a building for underprivileged African American children in 1944, which shocked the community. This was considered one of the largest gifts ever given by a Southern African American at the time, named the Anna Dupree Cottage of the Negro Child Center. In 1952, the Dupree’s opened another community center named the Eliza Johnson Home for Aged Negros, named in memory of Dupree’s mother. Dupree and her husband donated money to the Houston College of Negroes, now named Texas Southern University, and the United Negro College Fund. The couple gave $11,000 so the college could build its first permanent building. They also raised money for Camp Robinhood, the first black Girl Scout camp, and sponsored the first Little League baseball team for blacks in Houston.