SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Mechanicsburg, Ohio — A barber that served customers in Mechanicsburg for more than 40 years, also served as a sort of town historian, collecting dozens of photos of the village's early history.

Don Moore, the lifelong Mechanicsburg resident, also created plenty of memories of his own and friends and customers said they will remember him for a long time.

Moore, who ran a small barbershop in downtown Mechanicsburg for decades, died earlier this month. His business served as a makeshift museum of the village's history, as framed photos from the early 1900s line the walls. On occasion, school children would stop by on field trips, where they would get a quick history of the village.

"We always had to stop in there every morning to get the gossip and kind of get rejuvenated for the day," said Glen Meeks, a longtime customer and friend.

"Just for me knowing Don, our friendship was really great," said Jay Bogard, a close friend who grew up with Moore.

Doris Moore, his wife, said a "liar's bench" sat outside the shop, allowing customers to sit and talk while they waited for their haircut. With his easy demeanor and his sense of humor, discussions that might have gotten heated elsewhere, always seemed calm at Moore's barber shop.

Moore was a hard worker, and even in his later years, worked six days a week. When he was home, he liked to work in his rose garden or tinker around the house. His father painted houses for a living, Moore's wife said, and he met many people throughout the village as he followed his dad to work. He lived in only two houses in his entire life, she said.

"He had spent his whole life in this town so I think everybody knew him," she said.

"It's unlikely the village will ever have a gathering place quite like Moore's barber shop ever again, Meeks said.

"Evidently, the Good Lord must have wanted a good hair cut, so he took Don," Bogard said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0355 or msanctis@coxohio.com.