westpoint barber shop

Westpoint Barber Shop - Bill Carlton, longtime owner of West Point Barber Shop, is retiring after 56 years on Main Street. (jaxon)

West Point - Bill Carlton can still remember cutting his hair as a kid at the West Point Barber Shop - then known as the West Point Sanitary Barber Shop.

Westpoint Barber Shop

Carlton, the store's longtime owner, sat in one of the two barbershops in the Main Street store, looked around, and nodded.

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Now 82, he's retired and has sold West Point Barber Shop, the shop he owned and worked for nearly 60 years. After grooming generations of locals, he estimated he gave thousands of first haircuts and even shaves to the likes of Marine Lt. Gen Lewis B

On either side of Carlton were his wife Shirley and daughter Pam Walsh. Both shared memories of the hay day in the store; When it was the West Point Barber Shop

"Everyone gathered there," Walsh said. "If anything happened in the community — if I or my brothers got into trouble or did anything — our dad [Bill Carlton] would certainly hear about it first in the store."

Dale Seward, a friend and loyal West Point customer for nearly 50 years, said Carlton's retirement felt like the end of an era.

A Barber Talks On The Phone As He Cuts Hair At Gibson's Hair Styles And Cuts, April 23, 2013, In West Point, Mississippi. Locals Say Jobs Are Needed I Stock Photo

Seward said, "Bill (Carlton) is a good Christian and a nice guy all around." "He gave a good haircut too. He's about the only barber I know in this area and we'll miss him."

Former US Senator Bob Dole, who Carlton knew through Walsh and her husband, said he still wanted the haircut he had been promised.

"[Small-town barbershops] remind me of Russell, Kansas, where I grew up," Dole said. "We had two little barber shops — one of them was called Hollinger's — and having those shops in town made it convenient for people not to have to leave town."

Dole said he remembered "Billy" for his big personality and said he knew it would take Carlton some time to adjust to his retirement.

Clippings From The History Of Barbering In Lansdale

Carlton said he decided to become a barber when he was young because he couldn't afford college and wanted to learn the trade. After graduating from King and Queen's Pleasant Hill High School in 1950, Carleton entered the Richmond Barber School and completed a 1,248-hour course in just a few months.

He admires his teachers so much, Carleton said, that he was asked to remain at the school as a coach. Carlton even found a way to pursue his talents when he was called to active duty with the United States Coast Guard during the Korean War as a sonar operator while earning money as a ship's barber.

In 1956, after four years in the Coast Guard, Carlton and his partner Jesse Haynes bought West Point Barber Shop from owner Roland Rainier.

In 1975, Haynes went to the RockTenn paper mill in West Point - then Chesapeake Corp. - So Bill Carlton bought it and he became the sole owner of the company. Two years later, Shirley Carlton worked for him until a car accident left her unable to stand for a long time.

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Since then, Bill Carlton has single-handedly managed things, removing unwanted padlocks from locals and visitors alike. Shirley Carleton said that Bell's barbering skills and warm, friendly personality drew clients from as far away as Richmond and Deltaville.

"Just (that day) a man came down from Matthews and asked for a haircut," Shirley Carlton said. "When we told him the shop was closed, he got angry and said, 'You mean I have to find a new barber?'"

If Bill Carlton is known for anything, it's treating his clients as friends. When someone is sick or in the hospital, they make their way to their house or hospital bed and provide them with a trim.

"It's a small town," said Bill Carlton, "so you know everyone anyway, but your customers are your friends."

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Dean said, "[Bill] is one of the nicest guys I've ever met, an amazing hairstylist and a great friend." "He loved cutting his hair and I know he'll miss it."

Robert "Ace" Dereth, Bill Carlton's best friend of more than 50 years, said that Bill was successful because he was a good, loyal businessman who clients could trust. Dereth said the two met while they were in Boston and that he came to know Carlton as the type of person who always puts others before himself.

"Bill was always a high profile person and always had a good story to tell when you sat in the chair to cut your hair," Dereth said. "I can imagine he's going to have a hard time concentrating on anything (now that he's retired), but he's always been an interesting person - he'll keep himself busy in a way."

Although he has shut down the barbershop and closed the shop, Bill Carlton will remain in Eltham, where he and Shirley have lived since the 1960s. Shirley said she's looking forward to having him in the house and might even have him get his hair cut in the garage occasionally.

Scissors Style Barber

Walsh said the shop is for sale and that if possible the family would happily sell to another barber who is as passionate about his work as Bill Carlton.

"[Selling the store] isn't about the money," Walsh said. "We want someone to buy it who loves what they're doing because that's not just a job, it's a place of community."

Walsh said the family set up an email account for friends and well-wishers to send their regards to Bill Carlton. She said the family hopes to compile the letters into a scrapbook.

Walsh also said parties interested in purchasing the business can also contact the family through this email address.

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Update: The West Point Barber Shop was bought by Rebecca Carter who worked under Carlton when he was the owner. The store will reopen on July 1, 2015 as The West Point Family Barber Shop.

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