Olson Barber Shop
Known Name(s)
Olson Barber Shop
Address
103 1/2 S. Main St. Aberdeen, SD
Establishment Type(s)
Barber Shop
Physical Status
Extant
Description
In 1937, a one-story brick building with two and a half storefronts replaced earlier buildings that had had the addresses 101, 103, and 103 1/2 S. Main on the 1929 Sanborn Insurance map for Aberdeen. The building was remodeled in 1981 and 1998, but has retained overall character. 101-103 S. Main was listed in the National Register as part of the Aberdeen Commercial Historic District in 1988
Sources: Sanborn Fire Insurance Co., Aberdeen, South Dakota (July 1929), sheet 3; South Main Street: Changing and Changeless (Aberdeen/Brown County Landmarks Commission, c.2007), 22; Troy McQuillen, Aberdeen (Charleston SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2013), 35.
Detailed History
George K. Olson (1902-1952) originally worked in the Ward Barber Shop across the street but opened Olson's Barber Shop at 103 1/2 at least by 1940. In about 1950, C. Harland Leighty joined Olson in the business. Leighty took over ownership after Olson's death in 1952 and it became "Harland's Barber Shop." Between 1958 and 1960, the spot became Imbery's Barber Shop, run by George and Melvin Imbery.
Sources: Aberdeen city directories 1948-1960, via Ancestry.com; R.L. Polk's Aberdeen City Directories from 1940 to 1956, SD State Archives, Pierre; Troy McQuillen, Aberdeen (Charleston SC: Arcadia Publishing, 2013), 35.
