Searcy has changed much in the past few decades with expansive new growth and booming economic opportunities, but “the old days” are not quite gone yet. There are still several places that are glimpses into the past. Joe’s East End Barber Shop, with its original 1958 furniture and its owner, Joe Cunningham, allows people to step back into a different era, even if for just a few minutes.
President Bruce McLarty frequented Joe’s while a student and has continued to do so years later, not just as a customer but also as a friend.
“He loves his customers and he loves talking to people,” McLarty said. “He loves being at the center of an ongoing continuous narrative.”
At 81, Cunningham feels very fortunate to still be able to do what he enjoys and is thankful for the many years of memories it has brought him.
“I’ve made a lot of friends and relationships cutting hair,” Cunningham said. “I’ve been cutting some people’s hair for 55 years now. I love cutting hair, I just love it. It’s creative.”
Cunningham, 81, has been in business as a barber serving Searcy for 55 years. Though he opened his business in 1958, shortly after moving to Searcy, Cunningham has actually been cutting hair since he was 14. As a young teenager, he learned to cut hair at his father’s barbershop in Heavener, Okla., and would give free haircuts to children who could not afford them as practice. Located on 1519 E. Race St., East End Joe’s Barber Shop has only moved one time since it opened, across the street to a larger space.
Only working on Tuesday and Wednesday, Cunningham opens the shop at 6:30 a.m. and will often not have a break until lunch. He turned control of the shop over to his granddaughter, Marla Rutherford, who now works there full time.
“I love Harding kids, and I have always said that they are great,” Cunningham said. “I have cut hair for many Harding students and many of those from the time they were in school to now. Harding really supported me. I was in the hospital in 1992 and they visited me and sang to me. It was really special.”
Some of the contacts he made while his customers were students have translated into long-term relationships.
Shortly after moving back to Searcy in 1991, McLarty asked his secretary at College Church of Christ where her husband got his hair cut. She recommended Joe’s East End Barbershop, and 22 years later McLarty is still a customer.
“East End Joe’s is still the same barber culture I remember while growing up,” McLarty said. “The barber is the hub of a community.”
