Memory Lane #5

DOWN MEMORY LANE TO ... WHITE'S BARBER SHOP!

Recalling, to the best of my ability, the small stores and shops of Royersford in the late 50's and most of the 60's has so far been fun. Catch up by going back through my blog "Memory Lane".

Back then if you needed something, you could find it on Main Street. As a matter of fact there were few other places to go. No Strip Malls, Shopping Centers or Outlets. Just down to earth and mostly privately owned and operated small businesses. A few of them still exist today and continue to serve both new and old loyal customers.

Most of the time my interest focused on where to get something to eat, drink or play with. Due to the requirement of "looking half decent", as my Mom would put it, I had to get a hair cut every so often. There were two barber shops right on Main Street.  One of them was DiCesare's at 358 Main Street and almost directly across was White's Barber shop at 345 Main Street. DiCesare's, as I remember, was a bit larger and had two seats or stations in which to serve the customers.

My choice was White's which may have been because I lived on that side of Main Street in what was then Miller's Apartments. Down a few flights of steps, out the front entrance and a few steps to the left and I was there!

White's was, and still is, a nice smaller shop and it was there that I would stumble in, praying that it would not be crowded, and be greeted by the man we referred to as "Whitey". The occasional wait was never to long because times were simple and hair cuts consisted of a  "trim" or even a quicker good ol' "Flat Top".

Sitting quitely in a chair waiting my turn I would browse through the current issue of Outdoor Life or Sports Afield. My mind would drift off with the fishing or hunting stories as the sound of Whiteys' straight razor on the leather strap would be the background tune. There was also the smells of shaving cream and hair tonic. The men would puff on a cigar and chat during their time in the chair. Whiteys' conversation would always be appropriate to the customer he attended to unless it was common to all that were waiting.

My last hair cut there was probably just before entering the Marine Corps in 1968 because I wanted to look sharp when I got to Parris Island for Boot Camp. Little did I know that they would make it look a tad bit better in about three seconds! Now even today when I cruise down Main Street White's Shop brings back the memory and gets a extra few seconds of my wandering eyes as I pass.

Thanks again for taking time to read Memory Lane. As always, your comments are welcome.