Duke Haircutters, located in the basement of the West Union building on Duke University’s West Campus
As long as there have been colleges, their faculty and students have needed haircuts. Early campus unions often included a barber shop next to the other essential services they offered. Although some barber shops disappeared during building remodelings and students’ preferences for longer hair, you can still find some barber shops in the campus union. One of them is Duke Haircutters, located in the basement of the old West Union building on Duke University’s West Campus. Having found the shop on an earlier trip to campus, I stopped for a haircut on Good Friday. The barber shop is rather large, with six barber chairs and nine chairs for waiting customers. The walls are painted in school colors, and the chairs are all royal blue. Along the wall opposite the barber stations hang pencil drawings and a collage of pictures of past customers and barbers. There is a set of tall wire shelves just inside the door that hold hair products. I did have to set an appointment for 45 minutes later, as Bud had an impending appointment arriving (and David Fowler, the owner, books appointments for a month ahead of time). When it came my turn in the chair, I listened to the only other customer, a regular, talk about his business travels related to golfing interests. Because the barber shop is in the basement of the old union, the only folks walking by in the hallway outside were other employees, either of Duke Stores (whose office is across the hall) or maintenance and housekeeping staff. I had wanted to get a haircut on campus (as opposed to off-campus) in the hopes of seeing an eclectic mix of patrons. Instead I experienced the eclectic mix when I exited the building in the midst of a swarm of students, admissions tour groups, and other citizens looking for the Good Friday services at the well-known Duke Chapel. Overall, the haircut looked good and I paid $18, plus a tip.
Since my visit, the barber shop moved to the Bryan Center. A few years after the move, the shop has closed for good.
The barber shop at the Flying J Travel Plaza was not open the first Sunday I stopped.
In addition to attempting to get a haircut in all 50 states, I have tried to get my hair cut at unique locations. I have had my hair cut at a mall, at a barber school, at a chain barber shop, at a beauty salon, in a tourist attraction and near a museum. Now, I have had my hair cut at a truck stop. Here are the details.
On one of my trips through Virginia on Interstate 77, I stopped at the Flying J Travel Plaza at Exit 77. The truck stop offers a wide variety of services to travelers and truckers. One of those services is a small barber shop that is open selected hours. On a Thursday afternoon I found the barber shop open with no customers waiting. The shop itself is rather basic – two barber chairs and three chairs for customers. The shop has cabinets and mirrors along one wall and a magazine rack (with newspapers between two of the waiting chairs). While getting my hair cut, the stylist and I discussed the day’s weather (considering if it was going to snow) and the distances I had traveled that day. I mentioned where I live now and she mentioned visiting the nearby beach years ago. During this time, customers were passing by in the hallway outside and customers were being notified when their showers were ready for them. The uniqueness of getting your hair cut in a truck stop is due to all the activity going on around you, oblivious to your presence. I have not seen many barber shops in truck stops, maybe because of the presence of nearby towns or the reluctance to patronize a barber while driving through on the interstate. Overall, the haircut looked good and I paid $12, plus a tip.
Looking out front door of Smitty's, with smoke in hall
(Feel free to sing the song if you know it.)
Thursday morning I started a long weekend trip to Texas, flying to Austin via Dallas-Fort Worth. I picked Austin over other possible Texas cities for several reasons – the state Capitol, UT-Austin, and particularly barbecue.
From the airport, I traveled south to Lockhart. Lockhart is the proclaimed “Capital of Texas Barbecue.” A town of about 11,000 has three phenomenal barbecue restaurants and a fourth one that would be the best in most other towns. Lockhart is the last of the great barbecue meccas I have visited (Kansas City, Memphis, Goldsboro, Lexington, NC). To prepare, I did not eat anything until I got to Lockhart about 2PM. I first stopped at Raymond’s Barber Shop. He was busy, so I made an appointment for 3:40. I used the interim time to hit up two barbecue restaurants. I picked Smitty’s Market and Kreuz (“krites”) Market. The story behind the two – Kreuz Market has been around 100 years, but when the owner Mr. Schmidt died in 1999, he left the restaurant to a son and the building to a daughter. She kicked him out and he took the name to a new place down the street (with a police escort for the lit coals). She opened Smitty’s Market in the old location. I went to Smitty’s first – it’s in an old supermarket, with the various departments in separate rooms off a long hallway. The walls are black, from smoke or paint, I’m not sure. They keep fires burning constantly and they are out in the open (watch your step). The food at Smitty’s and Kreuz is served the same, order your brisket by the pound, they’ll slice it on the butcher’s block, wrap it in butcher paper with some bread, and off you go – no sauce, no plate, no forks. I ate a half-pound of brisket at each place, with a couple sides at Kreuz. I liked the brisket at Kreuz better, but Smitty’s is the most authentic barbecue joint I’ll ever find.
Raymond’s Barber Shop is a great one-chair barber shop on the square. I asked Raymond for his favorite barbecue place and he said it was the City Market in Luling. He’s biased, since its owner is a loyal customer of his. We talked about various things, including chainsaw accidents and how a rain shower earlier in the day left only a few drops. Raymond’s is the first time I have ever made an appointment for a haircut and is the 75th barber shop I have visited since February 2000.
Friday was my day around Austin. I went first to the State Capitol. Like most things in Texas, it is bigger than any other Capitol I’ve seen. I was surprised at the dearth of statuary celebrating authentic Texas heroes, but they had enough paintings inside to make up for it. Two most interesting things – 1) The Governors are listed as Governors, with no notation to say they were Confederate or military; and even more surprising, 2) there is an entry way that celebrates all Texan military victories, whether 1836, 1848, or 1860s. Yes, along with San Jacinto and Guadalupe Hidalgo, are a couple of Confederate victories over Union forces. The Bob Bullock Museum of Texas History filled me on these victories. The Texas Republic gets a lot of attention, with everything else mentioned as deeply as a HS textbook.
Friday afternoon I saw the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum on the campus of UT-Austin. Of course, it was entirely positive of his presidency, but surprisingly brief considering his larger-than-life personality. From there, I took a stroll across campus and ended up at the student co-op/bookstore. It’s a suprisingly compact campus for having more students than the University of Minnesota.
Saturday I visited a couple more LBJ sites – his boyhood home in Johnson City and his ranch near Stonewall. The ranch looks just like LBJ left it in 1973. I also made it out to Fredericksburg to the Museum of the Pacific War, which celebrates every battle fought in that theater in WWII. It is in Fredericksburg because Admiral Nimitz, commander of the Pacific fleet, was born and raised there. A bunch of Germans settled there, marked by restaurants, beer halls, and a plethora of antique stores. It’s also not far from Luckenbach (and Willie and Waylon and the boys). Sunday I flew back, with an accumulation of souvenirs.
My 50 State Project Scorecard:
Haircuts (31): Raymond’s Barber Shop, Lockhart
State Capitol (24)
Church (24): St Peter the Apostle Catholic, Austin
Movie (26): “Due Date,” Austin
Barbecue (25): Smitty’s and Kreuz Markets, Lockhart
Community College (24): Pinnacle campus, Austin Community College
(This leaves only the baseball game from the complete Texas set)
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Other findings –
Close Encounters with Longhorns – On the LBJ Ranch, driving through the pasture, I manuevered through the herd. Also, Friday night I was at the movies when two tour buses pulled up and dropped off about 30 members of the Texas Longhorns football team. If I followed Texas football, I might have recognized some of the guys.
It’s impossible to avoid live music. At a random Applebee’s in south Austin Friday, Pride and Joy (a Stevie Ray Vaughn cover band) was playing to a packed house.
Order at Kreuz Market, Lockhart Longhorn on driving tour of Johnson Ranch
The Ed Jeffers Barber Museum is located in Canal Winchester, Ohio. It began as the personal collections of the late Ed Jeffers, a local barber who once served as the leader of both the national and Ohio barber boards. Over the course of his career he collected all forms of barber equipment, supplies, and novelties. When he passed, he willed his collections to the City of Canal Winchester. They have maintained it as a museum in downtown, located above Rex’s Barber Shop. The museum is open by appointment only.
I had learned of the museum through the documentary film “Barberland,” which included a feature of Mr. Jeffers giving a tour of his collections. The museum takes up the entire floor. There is a large room with several barber stations, complete with “back bars,” mirrors, chairs, sinks and several display cases of razors. Another room contains the look and feel of a 1950s-era barber shop, with the possibility that it could one day be re-certified as a barber shop (for haircuts during promotions). Other rooms contain Mr. Jeffers’ office, early hair curling apparatus, and barber-related novelties. There are barber poles, signs, and shaving mugs located throughout the museum. If the product was used in a barber shop, odds are that Mr. Jeffers collected it (he received donations from all over).
The museum is run and maintained by the local historical society. I was given a tour by a semi-retired barber who shared stories and his own experiences, and he was able to answer my questions about various items in the shop. I enjoyed the museum, given my study and patronage of barber shops and barbering.
After the tour, I was inspired to get my hair cut at Rex’s Barber Shop, located in the same building, a floor below the museum.
The entrance to the Museum, on High St, Canal Winchester For those really big jobs
…He Can Work in Pike Place Market (My apologies to the oft-quoted Ancient Chinese Proverb, whomever he was)
(What follows is my account of a trip to Seattle.)
I just got back today from my long-planned and much-anticipated Empire Builder trip. I waited until after I paid off my student loans, so this was a celebratory trip in some ways.
I did the trip in three parts – I flew to Seattle last Saturday (5th), spent three days there; then climbed aboard the Empire Builder on the evening of the 8th,the trip took two days; then I spent Thursday evening and Friday in Chicago before flying home today.
Here’s a recap of my non-train trip:
Saturday morning I flew United through Chicago to Seattle. The longer version – they discovered a flat tire just when they started to board passengers. Since United did not have a maintenance crew or even spare parts, they had to borrow a crew from USAir. The tire, however, had to be flown in from Washington-Dulles (lose 2 hrs). While the tire was being flown in, there was a fire alarm in the terminal and we all evacuated. We stood on the lovely tarmac for about 20 minutes. Once the new tire arrived (as other passengers relayed this to me), the borrowed crew proceeded to unfold and read the three pages of instructions on how to change a tire. I didn’t see them do this, because I probably would have opted to fly Southwest at that point. As a result of this lovely tire adventure, I arrived in Chicago four hours late. I missed the connection to Seattle, even though I had built in a 3 hr 49 min layover. Caught the next flight though. On a related note, United is now my least favorite airline. I took a picture of their “#1 in on-time arrivals” banner at O’Hare. I could have flown any of the competitors they cited and beaten them there.
I stayed in downtown Seattle. I was able to use the SoundTransit light rail and Monorail while I was there, so it is the “greenest” trip I’ve ever taken. I walked to church Sunday morning and instantly became the featured attraction during the “Pass the Peace” portion of the service. The joys of introductions.
Sunday afternoon I went to the Mariners game at Safeco Field. Safeco has a roof, but it is not an indoor stadium (unlike Miller Park in Milwaukee). The roof was on when I got there, they unrolled it before first pitch, and then it proceeded to start raining, so they closed it again. It’s quite a spectacle. Speaking of spectacles, the Mariners ended up blowing the game in the top of the 7th and lost to the Angels 9-4. It was Little League Sunday and approximately 25 teams walked around the field prior to the game. The oddest promotion was “Steal Second Base,” where one of said Little Leaguers was permitted to rush pell-mell from dead center field to second base, and yes, pull it up and run back with it. The PA guy heckled the kid for taking longer to run off the field than he did coming on. That makes four major league baseball teams I have watched, all in the American League.
Monday I played tourist. I walked down to Pike Place Market and walked all around. I watched them throw a few fish at the Pike Place Fish Market, poked my nose around some of the farmers booths and junk shops, ate a smoked salmon omelet while looking out at Puget Sound, and discovered the delicious Chukar Cherries. I highly recommend them, based on the package I consumed. I also got my hair cut at Sergio’s Barber Shop at the Market. He didn’t have his name on the door, but did have a cool sign out front. He spoke of wanting to retire to a small Mexican village on the coast (with no tourists or drugs), where he could fish everyday. He has been at this location for 21 years and has only a few more years before he can retire. We commiserated about the less-informed members of society and spoke some of current events. I was his first customer of the day, so I didn’t get to see much of his shop. Sergio decorated it to cater to the tourists he has come in (like me!) and has old movie posters and such on the wall. The experience was shaped by the barber knowing he is part of a tourist attraction.
I took the Monorail to the Space Needle. It was not as crowded as I would have thought. The views were magnificient, etc. I then visited the Experience Music Project next door that celebrates Seattle music, including big displays on Nirvana, the grunge movement, and Jimmy Hendrix. Tuesday I went to Chinatown and visited the Wing Luke Asian Museum and the Klondike Gold Rush NHP. For your trivia purposes – 1) The late Wing Luke was the first Asian-Pacific Islander elected to the Seattle City Council back in 1962, and the local museum was created to realize his dream of celebrating immigrants’ culture (the museum contains the remnants of a boardinghouse where many stayed upon arrival). and 2) the Klondike Gold Rush occurred in Alaska, not Seattle. Not sure why they have a branch of the site in Seattle, maybe for those who don’t go on Alaska cruises that stop at Skagway.
Tuesday PM I caught Amtrak’s Empire Builder to Chicago, where it arrived Thursday evening. Friday I watched a movie in Chicago and had dinner with some friends.
The scorecard for my adventures on this trip:
States visited (38) – Washington
Haircuts (30) – Sergio’s Barber Shop, Seattle
Church (23) – Plymouth Congregational Church United Church of Christ, Seattle
Movie (24, 25) – WA – Pacific Place Mall; IL – Muvico Theatres, Rosemont – the most ornate theatre I’ve ever patronized and also the first 3D movie (Shrek) that I’ve seen.
Barbecue (24) – Bronco’s BBQ. Pulled pork, baked beans.
Baseball (18) – Seattle Mariners.
Other notable events –
I watched an arrest in progress. Seattle’s finest had the suspect cuffed behind his back and leaning against the cruiser. He’d been searched already, but it required three cars and six officers. I was in Georgio’s Subs, eating Tim’s Potato Chips, when this happened.
It is possible to carry a huge suitcase on the CTA Blue Line to O’Hare in Chicago, I do not recommend it, as it requires lugging the suitcase four blocks from Union Station, down two narrow stairs, through several handicap entrances, and jammed into your seat on the train. It was rush hour, too. Then I walked over a mile from the Rosemont stop to the hotel. I also do not recommend doing that. But for $2.25 and the ability to avoid rush-hour car traffic v. a $40+ cab fare, I’d do it again.
Last Wednesday I visited the Buckeye Barber Shop in Mechanicsburg, Ohio. Mechanicsburg is a small town in eastern Champaign County, not far from my home town. For years I had driven through the town and was fascinated with the town’s barber shop. It was named Don’s Barber Shop in honor of longtime owner and barber Don Moore. Don served as a barber in town for around 40 years, until he passed away in March 2009. I meant to patronize his shop, as Don had decorated it to celebrate the town’s history. I did not make it in until last week. Don’s widow has rented the space to a new barber, who has chosen an Ohio State theme for his barber shop. It’s probably for the best that Matt changed the name and focus – it’s always difficult to follow a legend.
I started My Barber Shop Project in 2003 as a way to experience many of these small-town treasures. I have encountered many older barbers, including Jimmy Britt in Newton Grove, NC (who is in his 80s) and Kenneth Wood in Graham, NC (who is in his 90s). Once the older generation passes, I do not know how many “traditional” barber shops will survive or become more modern salons. It is too bad I missed Don, but I am glad to see that the new barber has kept the cute and iconic barber shop sign above the door.
Visiting all 100 of North Carolina’s counties is something of a political ritual in statewide campaigns. I first heard of the idea from the Republican gubernatorial nominee in 2004, during his concession speech. Since I had just moved to NC, I set about exploring my new home state. I set out to visit all 100 counties. For my visit to count I had to physically set foot in the county, and for a reason other than a restroom break while driving.
During the 2005 baseball season I attended home games for all ten minor league teams in North Carolina. In December 2006, I visited the last of NC’s 27 State Historic Sites (starting with the State Capitol in July 2004 through Historic Edenton). I have been on the campuses of many University of North Carolina campuses and quite a few community colleges.
In October 2008 I found myself at 92, six western counties and two on the coast. Here’s how I achieved the last six:
93) Mitchell – November 2008 – I had to test how my new car handled in the mountains. I ate lunch in Grassy Creek and went to Spruce Pine.
94) Avery – November 2008 – I stopped at the main campus of Mayland Community College, located just over the line from Mitchell County.
95) Hyde – February ’09 – Hyde County is the edge of the earth – flat, marshy and grassy. I drove across the county line, took a picture of the Welcome to Hyde County sign.
96) Carteret – April ’09 – My family vacationed at Cape Carteret. I had dinner at the Sanitary Fish Market in Morehead City. The last county in the east.
97) Watauga – April ’09 – Visited Appalachian State University and watched a college baseball game.
To reach the goal of all 100, I did the final three in one road trip:
98) Wilkes – May ’09 – Visited the campus of Wilkes Community College in Wilkesboro.
99) Alleghany – May ’09 – Had my hair cut by Kermit Pruitt at Kermit’s Haircutting and Styling in Sparta, the county seat.
and –
100) Ashe – May ’09 – I visited the Ashe County Cheese Plant in West Jefferson and watched them make cheese. I have a picture of myself in front of the Cheese Store’s door to prove that I made it.
I have encountered a number of native North Carolinians who cannot claim to have visited all 100 counties. The fact that I have done so has earned me their respect.
This is a recap of a trip I took in early October to the Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia.
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For what it’s worth, I took the bunker tour at the Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia over the weekend. The bunker was built as a relocation center for Congress during the Cold War, should fallout make Washington uninhabitable. It was exposed about 15 years ago, and was opened for public tours about 12 years ago. It’s hidden in plain sight, the “Exhibit Hall” and “Governor’s Hall” and “Mountaineer Room” were available for rent all along, with guests not knowing that they were actually in the secret bunker. The secure areas around it, of course, were what was fascinating to me – think ’50s fall-out shelters and you have the general idea. The tour is on my list of life goals.
I also saw a movie (“9”) in Lewisburg (at Seneca Showcase 2 Cinemas, yep TWO screens) and went to church in Princeton. That’s 22 states each for those activities. I had my hair cut at Flanagan’s Barber Shop in Lewisburg, and toured the Lost World Caverns.
The entrance to the Bunker, the blast door was hidden behind the partition on the left
What follows is a recount of my trip in early September to Montana. (Title courtesy of the late John Denver.)
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Last week I took my long-planned trip to Montana. I’d been thinking about doing so for three years now. It’s the 37th state I’ve visited. I took precisely 549 pictures. I spent the week driving around and seeing various museums, as well as doing my “official” activities.
A recap of the week:
Monday I flew to Great Falls, MT through Salt Lake City. Great Falls has all of six gates, and four rental car companies (for some odd reason). I visited the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Interpretive Center and the CM Russell Museum. Ate barbecue at Big Mouth BBQ in Great Falls.
Tuesday I drove first to Fort Benton (visited the Fort and the Upper Missouri River Breaks National Monument). Then I drove to the great town of Conrad. I took pictures of various things around town with the town’s name (including the HS, the tire store) and asked the city clerk to take my picture with the municipal offices’ sign. There’s a little local history museum there as well. Conrad is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, so I had to get a commemorative item. Conrad is the next to last town on I-15 before you reach Canada. (In fact there is a rest area sign just south of town that says the next rest area is 80 miles north. That rest area is actually the border crossing.)
Tuesday night was my Great Falls Voyageurs baseball game. They are the lowest level affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They are named the Voyageurs because the team’s owner in 1959 reported a UFO sighting at the park. The park is also in the shadow of a pasta factory. The smell of fresh pasta permeated the place.
Wednesday I was in Helena. I went to noon mass at the Cathedral, visited the State Capitol, and walked the downtown pedestrian malls (“Last Chance Gulch”). Went to a Helena Brewers game. The stadium faces west (into the setting sun). Best game I’ve seen all year, as the Brewers won 2-1 on a walk-off double in the ninth (one of their only three hits all game).
Thursday, I went up to Deer Lodge. I fulfilled a life goal by visiting the Old Montana Prison. I prepared by watching The Shawshank Redemption for 21st time. I was fine with most of the self-guided tour, except for the spooky guard tunnel. Visited the Grant-Kohrs National Historic Site, a working ranch. I went back to Butte that afternoon and visited the Berkeley Pit, one of the world’s largest open-pit mines and the largest Superfund site in America. I sent a postcard of it to my dentist, thanking him for the credit card points I’d earned from my appointments with him. A large, manmade cavity with pollution – don’t know why I thought of my dentist.
Friday, I had my haircut in Butte, at the Headframe Barber Shop. It is in a converted theatre, with the barbershop using the old vertical signage out front. I was hoping I could find an authentic barber shop in one of the small towns I passed through. (Fort Benton had a combination bar/barbershop that I was too scared to try, Conrad had a cheesy named place, and Deer Lodge and Anaconda had only “Sally’s Mane Attraction” and other beauty salons.) I waived my name rule for the Headframe Barber Shop because I liked the look of the place. Butte has 31,000 people, which is good enough for the top 5-6 largest places in Montana. We talked about a recent hailstorm, the “best thing for Butte’s economy in recent years.”
Friday I also visited Montana Tech in Butte, as well as a couple mining museums. I ate at the 3 4ks Cafe in Three Forks and saw another great local history museum. I spent Friday night in Bozeman, where I watched my Montana movie. Just me and students from nearby Montana State University.
Saturday I drove back from Bozeman to Great Falls (224 miles). I stopped at the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman (it’s all about dinosaurs). I set foot in the headwaters of the Missouri River in Three Forks, matching when my brothers and I set foot in the headwaters of the Mississippi in Bemidji, MN eight years ago. I ate at the Wheat Montana Bakery and Deli, which is a bakery right next to the flour mill. It’s also the only place one can eat between Bozeman and Three Forks (about 40 miles). The drive was not too bad, as there was little traffic and the views of both the mountains and the plains are great. I took a number of pictures through the windshield while I was going 80 miles an hour.
Sunday I flew back to Raleigh through Minneapolis-St. Paul. They have finished the expansion and renovation since I was last there six years ago. They even added a barber shop to Concourse D.
The scorecard for my adventures:
States Visited (37)
Haircuts (29) – Headframe Barber Shop in Butte
Capitol (21)
Church (21) – Cathedral of St. Helena
Movie (21) – Bozeman
Barbecue (22) – Big Mouth BBQ, Great Falls
Baseball (17) – Great Falls Voyageurs, Helena Brewers
Community College (21)
The following is a trip I took to Kentucky in late March 2009.
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Thought I would let you know I got back from a long weekend to Kentucky, visiting my college friend who is attending seminary in Wilmore.
It was a haircut-related excursion of course. I also visited two “factories” – the Louisville Slugger Museum and Factory and the Woodford Reserve bourbon distillery in Versailles. I also visited Churchill Downs in Louisville Monday before I flew home. Add bourbon to the list of things you won’t want to partake of after you see how it’s made. The smell of fermenting corn is quite pervasive, not to mention visually disgusting.
An update on the “State Project”:
Haircut: Danny’s Barber Shop in Lawrenceburg (28 states now)
Capitol: The Governor of Kentucky said hello to me (20 states)
Church: In Lexington (19)
Movie: In Lexington (20)
Barbecue: In Louisville (20) – they gave me tea with sugar in it and tried call it “sweet tea”
CC: Bluegrass CC (18) – Lawrenceburg
I also walked around the University of Kentucky campus and talked intelligently about how UK was going to fire their basketball coach that afternoon. It pays that I read the paper that morning. The Capitol was the most interesting twist on this trip – I can say I’ve met or greeted five current governors at some point in my life (OH, MN, FL, NC being the others).
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