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"The seats of Amyx Barber Shop have held University greats like Phog Allen, Roy Williams, football coaches and track stars, such as Jim Ryun. They’ve all walked in the door with one intention: to get what’s said to be the best haircut in town.
Mayor Mike Amyx has been cutting hair at the shop since 1975. Amyx, his father and his grandfather have served the Lawrence community since 1908. But Amyx said before the shop was filled with KU students looking for a trim, farmers would ride into town to get their hair cut by Amyx’s grandfather, Cecil Amyx. Back then, farmers would bargain for the price of their haircut with anything they were able to trade, including chickens, eggs, beef or cream.
“The financial economic times were a lot like they are today,” Amyx said. “My dad would work from morning to night and not collect any money, but there was a lot of bartering going on.”
The atmosphere of the shop is what draws its customers. The walls are covered with pictures of the KU campus, old teams and unknown players. The walls in Amyx Barber Shop, 842 1/2 Massachusetts St., are almost alive — they speak to each customer of the tradition of Lawrence and the University.
Pictures of Roy Williams,Phog Allen and young Lawrence High football teams posing at the peak of their youth drape the walls. One cannot help but feel and see the history walking into Amyx’s shop. The history in Amyx’s shop is evident: in the center of the shop is an old fashioned barber’s chair, with the original scissors and tools that date to the early 1900s.
The hairstyles may have changed since the shop opened, but not much else is different for the barbershop, Amyx said.
Jeri Bryant, who’s been a barber at Amyx for 20 years, said he’s seen it all.
“You get to see little kids turn into young adults,” Bryant said. “You really get to know people personally over time. It’s really neat.”
The shop has eight barbers, and most of them have been there for several years. Most customers who get their hair cut at Amyx feel welcome from the day they walk in.
“I have been getting my hair cut here for four and a half years now,” said Sean Mulhern, a senior from San Francisco. “Being from California, you don’t see too many barber shops so tied to its community like Amyx Barber Shop. The mayor of the town is cutting my hair; you just don’t see that where I’m from. I have never even seen San Franciso’s mayor up close.”
Amyx has had the pleasure of working alongside his father, something he acknowledges not many people get to do. He’s also enjoyed watching young boys grow into men while being a part of the biggest moments in their lives.
“To be able to be a part of their lives is a pretty big deal,” Amyx said. “I have given kids their first haircut, prom haircut and even the haircut before they get married.”
After cutting hair for 35 years, Amyx said he couldn’t be happier. The booster stool his father sat on as a kid to get his hair cut is the same one Amyx sits on and is still using today. The cash register used by his grandfather in 1908 is the only one the shop has ever needed and ever used. Now, Amyx cuts the hair of men his age who received their first haircut from his father. It’s clear that Amyx knows that his experience is both unique and special.
“I’ve been a part of a lot of good relationships.” Amyx said. “It’s been a pretty good deal and pretty good life.”
Edited by Roshni Oommen
By Carlo Ramirez
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