New location doesn't change Dick's Barber Shop

Friday, May 29, 2015
Sitting in the first chair of the newly-relocated barber shop that bears his name, Dick Asbell gets his hair cut by son Phil. After closing the old Dick's Barber Shop at 11 S. Indiana St. last week, the new shop at 1 E. Franklin St. opened Friday with the longtime proprietor as the first customer. Other customers weren't far behind, with several arriving before 8 a.m. and the opposite wall soon lined with regulars. The moving process is set to continue through the weekend, but in the meantime the haircutting and storytelling has resumed in a new location.

The plan was for Dick Asbell to be the first person to get a haircut in the newly-relocated Greencastle barbershop that bears his name.

And while Asbell was indeed in the first chair getting a trim from son Phil at 7:45 a.m. Friday, he wasn't alone. Apparently a week was enough time to wait for a number of regular customers, for in the chair next to Asbell was local attorney Cy Young, getting a haircut from Frank Sweeney 15 minutes before the shop officially opened.

Three more customers were lined up before third barber Bud Thomas could even set up his equipment.

The move from 11 S. Indiana St. to 1 E. Franklin St. changed the look of Dick's Barber Shop, but it didn't change what happens inside -- haircuts, shaves and good conversation.

"It's going to continue to be your traditional barber shop," Phil Asbell said of the business he recently took over from his retired father.

That tradition seems to be what dozens of men of the community want, as the three barbers had a steady stream of customers throughout Friday morning and afternoon.

While the return of veteran barber Kenny Finchum from a fishing trip should help alleviate some of the rush, all of the business seemed to speak to something more. The barbershop was only closed three days but regulars seemed to be itching -- some quite literally -- to get back in the chair.

"Where have you been?" was a common query on entrance to the shop Friday.

And why shouldn't they wonder? The barber shop on South Indiana Street has been in operation since 1923, with Dick cutting hair from 1959 through 2014.

That was when former owner Maynard Johnson recruited the elder Asbell and Wyatt Brummett out of barber school to join his Greencastle shop.

In 1962, Asbell and Brummett took over as co-owners. Brummett left to start The Matador in 1964, leaving it as Dick's Barber Shop these last 51 years.

Even with the transfer from father to son, the name has remained in place. Phil keeps his dad's name on the sign in much the same way he seems to be emulating his life.

"I spent 25 years in sales," Phil said, before adding that the travel got to be too much with missed ballgames and school functions. The father of four wants to be around more.

"I figure that if Dad raised four kids as a barber, so can I," Phil said. "My youngest is eight, so I have to do this for another 20 years."

The men set up to his right should provide some reassurance of the longevity one can have in the career. Sweeney, Thomas and Finchum have all worked for Asbell for between 11 and 35 years and all have years, if not decades, of experience elsewhere.

Another longtime Asbell lieutenant was George Bailey, who worked in the shop for 25 years.

Dick knows he's been fortunate to have good barbers in his shop who've stuck around.

"I think I've only had seven barbers in 50 years," Asbell said.

This was a far cry from the luck Brummett found at The Matador, having once estimated for Asbell he'd had 50 people working in his shop.

"I've been lucky," the retired Asbell said.

One change in the new shop is the move from three to four chairs, a setup that was simply not possible in the cozy confines of the old building.

In fact, even with the extra chair, the new shop is much more roomy, with ample space between the barbers and enough room that the patrons don't have to be elbow to elbow as they wait.

A few touches are yet to come, like baseboards, more lighting, more wood trim and two barber poles -- one interior and one exterior.

Several conversations on Friday centered around the stuffed wildlife that lined the walls of the old place.

"All the dead animals are coming," Phil said. "We have a bit of an echo. We kind of need a couple of boars' heads and a caribou to deaden the noise."

Having watched the customers trickle in as he sat for his haircut, Young offered another perspective.

"He's already got most of the animals moved," Young said with a laugh. "We're sitting in here now."

Phil was planning to continue much of this work after closing Friday evening and again on Saturday afternoon. From his dad's perspective, the work he'd already done was pretty impressive.

"This looks nice," Dick said. "It's been a lot of work. Phillip probably put 100 hours in it here in the last week."

That 100 hours was spent converting a building that had been a bar since the late 1800s and was most recently the home of United Brotherhood of Carpenters 859.

The move was one borne out of necessity, but one that Phil is confident will work out well. The old building was going to need to be gutted, meaning the business would either need to shut down or temporarily relocate for a few months.

Phil couldn't see the wisdom in moving twice, so he looked for something new and better.

"This is a pretty good location," he said of the spot just off courthouse square.

A Greencastle tradition continued in that location on Friday, with the shop resuming its normal hours: 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday and 8 a.m.-noon on Saturday.

Watching the customers continue to come in, Phil didn't need to say much.`

"It's busy and I'm tickled to death to be here."

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  • Dick gave me my first haircut in the 1950's when I was just a small boy growing up in Putnam county. I always enjoyed seeing and visiting Dick. It won't seem the same whenever I come back home for a visit.

    -- Posted by donantonioelsabio on Fri, May 29, 2015, at 3:29 PM
  • All of the old sites downtain have gone away:

    Dick's, Prevo's, Fleenor's fountain, Weber's toy store, Mac's, Coan's drug store, Donelson's Pharmacy, George's Pizza, the Voncastle, the Chateau, Book's Plus, Conrad's Stop & Shop, G.C. Murphy store (I can still smell the roasting cashews), Central National Bank, J.C. Penny's, Montgomery Ward's, A&P Grocery Store, the 5 & 10 cent store (Woolworth's), etc.

    It was a great time to grow up in Greencastle, Indiana. I even remember Roscoe Scott's restaurant on the north side of the square.

    -- Posted by donantonioelsabio on Sat, May 30, 2015, at 12:41 AM
  • Good Luck Phil, Thanks for keeping up a Greencastle tradition!!!

    -- Posted by talkymom3 on Sun, May 31, 2015, at 7:38 PM
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