The National Barber Museum and Hall of Fame completed my tour to the three unique museums near Columbus, Ohio. I started at the Pencil Sharpener Museum that showcased over 3000 sharpeners. Next, I visited the Ohio Doll and Toy Museum with thousands of antique dolls in the collection, many of them dated back to the 16th century.

The National Barber Museum is located in a school campus near the library building of Canal Winchester High School. I arrived there on a Saturday afternoon and Mike Ippoliti, the curator and director of the museum, was there to welcome me. He jokingly told me how lucky I was for being the only visitor that time, because I could have all his time as he’d talk about the museum and tour me around.

We started the tour at the room closest to the entrance.

Mike is a fun person to talk to and very knowledgeable on anything barbering. First, he told me about the founder Ed Jeffers and how Jeffers started the collection of now over 61 barber poles, more than 800 straight and safety razors, razor strops, clippers, bloodletting tools from the days of the barber-surgeon, shoeshine chairs, spittoons, and historical barber chairs. The museum also has a barber library of over 400 volumes.

Did I mention that more than 2,000 shaving mugs are being displayed on the walls? At first, I thought the mugs were for tea. You know, while the hairs were being cut, costumers could have tea drinks by their side. Mike giggled when he heard my thought about the mugs. Mike explained that the shaving mugs had prints of the costumers’ names, so it would be easy to identify the one to use for a costumer’s future visits in the barber shop. The individual shaving mugs were also meant to avoid the spread of skin infection among costumers.

I was fascinated by the colorful barber poles, in different sizes, all over the museum. Most of them are still operational. In fact, Mike was eager to turn on the power switch to show me the rotating poles in action. He explained that the three colors of the barber poles — red, white, and blue — signify the blood, bandages, and protruding veins, respectively. So what did blood, bandages, and protruding veins have to do with barbering? Mike showed me a photo of a barber shop with one barber cutting hair and another barber performing surgery, both in the same room. In the old times, barbers did much more than just hair cutting. They were also given the responsibility and the okay from the surgeons to perform bloodletting, and even extracting teeth.

One room of the museum is home to the National Barber Hall of Fame. Approximately 70 photos of members are posted on the wall, including Oprah Winfrey’s father, Vernon Winfrey, who at 85 years old continues to cut hair in Nashville, Tennessee.

There were dozens of the finest barber chairs on display. These chairs were once simple straight-back chairs. Over the years, they have became luxurious works of art.

The tour lasted for about 45 minutes, with each room full of wonderful treasures and telling different stories of barbering.

As I thanked Mike for a very informative tour, he handed me a brochure to share with my friends.

Address.

135 Franklin St, Canal Winchester, Ohio 43110
For GPS directions, here is the link to Google Map.

Hours.

The National Barber Museum & Hall of Fame is open from 11AM to 5PM on Fridays and Saturdays and by appointment. Call 614-837-8400.

Admission Fee.

$5 for adults, $4 for senior citizens, and $3 for students

Photos.

Old barber tools at the National Barber Museum.

Old barber poles at the National Barber Museum.

Shaving mugs at the National Barber Museum.

Oprah Winfrey’s father, Vernon Winfrey.

Video Clip.

See more travel search tags: Ohio Travel, Ohio, Western Ohio, Travel Western Ohio, Weird Things To See in Ohio, Ohio Attractions, Things to See in Ohio, Unique Things To See in Ohio, Places to See in Ohio