The beautiful masterpiece is still standing till today, even though not properly maintained.
A wealthy man in the early 1920s, Salami Agbaje was one of Ibadan’s indigenous entrepreneurs and textile dealers. He was the first person to own a car in Ibadan.
His textile store in the Gbaji area of Ibadan was the Mecca for all sorts of people who came from the entire stretch of Ibadan and Lagos to buy his wares.
However, the competition between the Lebanese and indigenous entrepreneurs increased the rate of insecurity for the latter, while the former continued to expand their trading activities. For instance, Salami Agbaje reputedly had to quit the textile trade because of them (Ojo, 1988, p. 30). Overall, the rivalry and competition did not favour Nigerian merchants.
Chief Salami Agbaje (Balogun of Ibadan) died in 1953.
Source: Esan People Blog
