A "CLIP JOINT" TO REMEMBER
The beloved old Milstead Community Center building was the most famous, and one of the favorite places in the village. Exploring it through a child's eyes, it was a truly magical place. Solidly built in the 1920's by craftsmen, I have never seen a building as complete in scope, and purpose, as the old gym.
It was a huge, building replete with massive wooden beams supporting a virtual catacomb of a floor plan, with literally something for everyone. Those of us who grew up in Milstead during that era are truly fortunate and I, personally, would not trade that experience for anything.
"Grady's Barbershop", occupied the main floor suite at the south end, and it was the only commercial business in the building. The proprietor, and sole barber, was Mr. Grady Shaw. From information gleaned from other sources, I have discovered that Mr. Grady had worked at Callaway Mills in his younger days, but at some point became a barber and opened his shop at the Community Center. I don't really know if he went to school to learn barbering, or just learned it on his own, but I remember business licenses on the wall, so I guess that's all he needed.
Mr. Grady had two, old, "Berninghaus Hercules" model barber chairs in his shop, however, I never remember there being a barber other than Mr. Grady. As a kid, I always thought the name "Hercules", molded into the foot stands, said "Her curls"...I couldn't figure that out, I mean, it was a barbershop for men...but I finally figured it out.
Mounted on the wall behind each of the two chairs were large mirrors, and beneath them were shelves lined with bottles of hair tonics, talc, and colognes of the day in various shapes, sizes, colors, and scents. The combinations of these scented chemicals, and talcum powder in the air always kept the barbershop smelling great.
There were also compartment for towels, washcloths, and other accoutrements of the barbering trade of the day. Two white, pedestal, sinks - made of solid porcelain - with the oddest crook-necked faucets I had ever seen, were mounted below the shelves for the water needs of barbering.
Hanging off the two chairs was the standard leather "strop", used by Mr. Grady to keep a keen edge on his straight razor. When you got haircut from Mr. Grady, you always got your neck shaved, whether you wanted it, or not. Warm lather from his cup and brush would be applied to the back of your neck, and then shaved clean of any straggler hairs that his clippers had missed. Afterwards, he would wipe off any leftover lather and apply a few dabs of "Witch Hazel" to your neck with a cotton ball.
The finale to your haircut was for Mr. Grady to sprinkle some talcum powder onto his soft barber's brush, and dust onto your neck. You had to hold your breath until the talcum cloud settled away, or you'd be sneezing for an hour. These were the kind of haircuts you could still feel two hours after you left the shop, but it was a pretty cool feeling.
Sitting high-up on the old shoeshine stand, an old wooden chair mounted it on top of a boxlike structure with two, metal, “foot stands”, was a favorite place to wait on your turn. The other, less adventurous customers would wait their turn on the folding metal chairs around the wall and enjoy the breeze of the old ceiling fan.
You could learn about everything going on in the village, and hear all manner of tall tales listening to the grown-ups talking in the waiting area.
Lots of folks probably don't even remember who gave them their first haircut, but if you grew up in Milstead, there was a good chance that it was Mr. Grady Shaw.
Comments from 2018
Terrell Shaw
Thanks so much for this remembrance, Frank. Grady Columbus Shaw was a wonderful grandfather. I anticipated my week in Milstead each year like Christmas. I would love to have better pictures of the shop. If you ever hear of any I’d love to have copies.
May I share your story... with atribution of course?
Terrell Shaw
Grady Shaw’s first barber shop was on the lane that followed the little ridge from the school to Main St. Is tgere a water tower there? My dad, as a boy, had the chore of opening the shop and starting a fire on cool mornings. One morning having fired up the stove he sat out front waiting for his Dad. When Grady Shaw got there he was running right past Charles to try to extinquish the fire that had escaped the stove and was consuming the building right behind my oblivious future father. The shop was a total loss. Somehow he managed to survive financially to rebuild his business at the community center. He did have another barber with him, I think in the forties, but not for long. I feel like I should know how he got his training, but I don’t remember now. He sold Knapp shoes and Singer sewing machines to supplement the barbering.
Frank Robinson
I do have this one...
Terrell Shaw
Frank Robinson That's MY picture! My dad and I took three or four pictures in the shop with a polaroid camera after my grandfather's funeral in 1965. I carried this one around for years and finally scanned and posted it several years ago.
Frank Robinson
OK, I got it somewhere off the web, and it was in a folder where I keep Milstead related photos. Sorry about that...good pic, though.
Terrell Shaw
Frank Robinson No problrm at all... glad it's out there. There's an old picture of a cousin sitting in the chair after a haircut. And a picture of my Dad and another of his brother James taken in the shop the same day as the picture above, but they are close-ups without much background.
Frank Robinson
Terrell Shaw I have another one with Marion Rooks (?) sitting in the extra chair, at least, that's what the caption says.
Terrell Shaw
Frank Robinson I’d love to see it.
Loretta Shaw
Mr Grady gave my son Terry his first haircut . He was very thoughtful he put the hair he cut off, in an envelope & told my husband he knew how mothers were & I would want it . it is still in his baby book 67 years later.
Danny Shaw
Frank Robinson My dad was Grady Jr and became a barber as well. I loved that place and remember being hoisted up on the booster made for the barber chair. I also remember getting a Coca-Cola with peanuts after my first haircut in that place that so many stories, shoe shines, and Kirby vacuums were displayed.
Galen Dale Foster
MR. Grady Shaw's Barber Shop was a gathering place for fishermen. Some of the largest fish in Yellow River were caught in that one room as he cut hair. There were some great tales told there some true some not so true.
I was a young boy waiting for a hair cut and I enjoyed the tales.
Deborah Shaw Lewis
My Daddy Shaw. How I loved him!
Yvonne Barmore
I remember he was every one's barbara!!! And folks sure did respect him!
Chester Walls
Got many haircuts there
Terrell Shaw
That's my Daddy Shaw. I shined a good many shoes in that shop. And with the dime I earned could pull a six ounce Coke out of the box and buy a pack of Tom's Peanuts to float in it while I drank the Coke and listened to my grandfather's stories.
If anyone out there has a "first haircut" picture from this shop, I'd love to see it!
Jerry Mills
Could you put a date to this photo Terrell Shaw
Terrell Shaw
Daddy Shaw died July 16, 1965. This looks to me like it was not too long before that.
Jerry Mills
Terrell Shaw I was searching "vintage photos Rockdale county" and found this one. Ruth Baird Shaw
Terrell Shaw
Yes, that’s my mother. I or my sister Beth likely posted that picture. My dad, Charles Columbus Shaw was son to Grady Columbus Shaw (Daddy Shaw).
No comments:
Post a Comment