Tucson's early black barbers fought racism, found success

Many of the them had come to Tucson with aspirations of improving their economic statuses. They often chose to settle here after being stationed in Southern Arizona while serving in the military. Once here, they found they could only be hired for menial jobs like delivering mail to mining camps, hauling ore from Oro Valley to Tucson, and cultivating land.

Instead, many decided to start their own businesses, which served as places offering more than just a shave and a haircut. The barbers engaged in local and national politics, and spoke out against issues that affected all Tucsonans.

The city’s first generation of black barbers came from Virginia, Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, Tennessee and as far north as Massachusetts. Despite rampant discrimination, they flourished. During the slavery era, wealthy white men had grown up seeing family members trust their personal grooming to black people. A New York newspaper even proclaimed that the best barbers were black.

By 1870, two of Tucson’s early black barbers, Thomas Grant and Charles Worgie, had attained personal wealth exceeding $250, a small fortune for men of color in those days. Samuel Bostick, who was born in Alabama, became a wealthy real-estate entrepreneur in both Pima and Pinal counties, and also operated his barber/bath shop. Urged on by his fellow citizens, he ran for mayor in 1874, but was defeated. An article in the Arizona Weekly Citizen on Jan. 10, 1874, sneered that “about three senseless vote[s] were cast for Mr. Bostick.” It continued, “Sam is a good citizen and industrious and honest man, several qualities of which we dare say those who voted for him are destitute.”

Between 1865 and 1870, many of Tucson’s black barbers worked out of tents until they earned enough money to rent or purchase land. Some eventually owned more than one shop, as well as other businesses. They also gained prominence in the community. John C. Clemons and his wife, Anna, came here from Texas. Records show that Clemons was elected by a black and white committee to serve as a delegate at the Republican Territorial convention in Prescott.

Frank Dinkins, originally from Texas, was the first black barber in Tucson to open a shop in the upscale Hotel Heidel on East Congress Street. Before that, Dinkins had run a popular establishment for 16 years. A successful owner of businesses and property, as well as a respected citizen, Dinkins’ move to the hotel in the early 1900s proved the value of black barbers and their ability to attract wealthy patrons. An Aug. 3, 1917, article in the Arizona Daily Star about Dinkins’ Metropolitan Barber Shop declared, “No shop in town has a higher class patronage then the Metropolitan.”

Black barbers learned their trade as slaves, in the military, or through apprentice programs. Those who trained in the programs also learned to read and write, which helped them to engage with their white clientele about local and national politics. Wary of upsetting customers, they rarely revealed their personal opinions, but rather used political topics to start conversations in their shops. As they listened, they learned how different issues affected their customers, as well as all Tucsonans. Emboldened, they began to speak out publicly via letters to various editors and town committees in the hope of making Tucson stronger. Two wrongs they did not fight were segregation and racial injustice — doing so would have stripped them of their livelihoods and prevented them from achieving their goals of building better lives for themselves and their families.

In his 2009 book “Knights of the Razor; Black Barbers in Slavery and Freedom,” Douglas Bristol Jr., associate professor of history at the University of Southern Mississippi, discusses how black barbers used their craft to cross forbidden boundaries rather than taking a direct approach. They were seen as respectable people with “ … good reputation, thrift and work ethic.” Slowly, they were able to shed the stigma of being black and became leaders in pushing for racial equality. By the late 1800s, Bristol writes, black barbers invented the “first-class barbershop” by creating an environment that appeared upscale and masculine. The barbershop became a place where affluent white men could congregate, debate political issues, and exchange stories while getting a shave. In many ways, customers assumed the role of master and the barbers that of slave, as they worked unnoticed while the white men carried on their conversations.

As their affluence grew, black barbers became a serious threat to their white counterparts, who struggled to keep their clientele. In 1886, white barbers established a nationwide union called the Journeymen Barbers’ International Union of America. A main goal of the union was to create codes on hygiene to be enforced by local health departments. Bristol’s research uncovered that the union used a report by a Parisian doctor named Remlinger, who conducted a “microscopic examination of his barber’s alum sticks (used to stop bleeding from razor nicks), which revealed the existence of more than 68,000 disease-producing germs.” The union used the report to force local and federal health officials and governments to create licensing requirements for all barbers, with the union as the overseer and administrant of licenses. Many of the early black barbershops in town stayed prominent despite the union and the new licensing regulations.

Black barbers were resourceful, seizing every opportunity to earn money and establish themselves in the Old Pueblo. They overcame poverty and racial discrimination, and their longstanding traditions of community involvement and pride in their craft live on in the community.

With each haircut and shave, today’s black barbers continue the legacy of those who came before them.