Historian's Corner



Charlene Cole
Sandy Creek/Lacona Historian
Historian's Corner
October 1, 2019

“The Village Barber” Wilson Eager, a Lacona barber, was in this building that is now “Huckleberry Ice Cream Shop.” Later Lawrence Remington ran his barber shop in the same building. This newspaper photo is not the best but was probably taken in the 1920’s era. The early electric lights and hair clippers gave Mr. Eager’s shop a modern touch. The fuse box and knob-and-tube wiring are above the door. The hat rack mirror on the right has cow-horn hangers and beside it is the cupboard where customers’ individual shaving mugs were kept.

Mr. Eager was a native of Gouverneur and moved with his parents to Sandy Creek in 1908, where his father ran the bakery until selling to F. Bellinger in 1921. Wilson attended a barber school in Buffalo in 1913, returning here to work in Edward Snell’s barber shop in Sandy Creek. He established his own barber shop in Lacona in 1915 where he remained for thirty-five years, hiring another barber to operate the shop during his absence for army service in World War I. In 1925, Wilson married Miss Evelyn Thomas of Sandy Creek and they had one son, Thomas.

His shop was often open in the late evenings as much for the joy of a good visit as for the accommodation of a rural customer who had no other
free time for a haircut.


Charlene Cole
Sandy Creek/Lacona Historian
1992 Harwood Drive
Sandy Creek, NY 13145
315-387-5456 x7
Office hours: Friday 9am to 2pm
www.sandycreeknyhistory.com