Barbara Carney
Special to the Tribune-Star
TERRE HAUTE —
When Tribune Star photographer, Bob Poynter, arrived at the Historical Museum and saw the shoe shine chair he was about to photograph, he immediately recalled sitting in that very chair while his father was getting a haircut at the Garfield Barber Shop in 12 Points at 1244 Maple Ave. The impressive chair is a recent and most appreciated gift from Rosetta Fagg, who, with her husband, John, purchased the building in 1966. John operated the barber shop where the shoe shine chair sat, while Rosetta was the proprietor of a beauty shop, the Coiffure Salon, in the same building.
The massive black chair with its leather seat and back sits on a platform on a marble slab. The lower level of the base is also covered with marble and has two heavy metal foot rests. A drawer holds shoe polish, brushes, and polishing cloths.
Today, commercial shoe shining is largely restricted to airports, but from the early 1900s to the 1970s, the corner shoe shine stand was a fixture in most cities and towns. Visit the Vigo County Historical Museum to see this and many other remembrances of Terre Haute’s past.
