by Barbara Rimkunas
This "Historically Speaking" column was published in the Exeter News-Letter on Friday, July 23, 2024.
Junius Jackson was no ordinary barber. In a town that had ten barbershops in 1911, Junius Jackson stood out. For one thing, he was the town’s only Black barber. Nationwide, this would have seemed unusual even in a very white society like Exeter. Cutting hair and blacking boots were the realm of many independent Black businessmen in large part because they were barred from other occupations simply because of their race. The African American population of Exeter had been shrinking from its height in 1790 of 4.8% of the population to just a few families by 1900.
Junius Jackson (sometimes spelled “Junious”), was born in Farmville, Virginia in Prince Edward County in 1844. The town had a large free Black population – Junius Jackson was born free. His father, Booker, was considered a skilled craftsman as a shoemaker. His mother was of Brazilian ancestry, possibly born in Brazil, although the census records place her birth in Virginia. One of Junius’s brothers trained as a shoemaker, another as a coachman. At age 16, Junius’s prospects seemed dim. His entry on the census lists his occupation as “none.” The year after the census-taker recorded the family, the area was under fire as the Civil War surrounded them. Farmville is located on the Appomattox River and Lee fought two battles there while retreating just before his surrender. We do not know what Junius was doing during the war, but by 1869 he had moved to Boston, married Margaret, and set up a hairdressing shop. It was while in Boston that his daughter, Emma, was born in 1879. Her birth record lists her name as “Emma Jane Jackson.”
The family moved to Exeter in the Fall of 1889. Emma was quickly enrolled at the Robinson Female Seminary, where her age was incorrectly recorded as fourteen. She was a bright student, which was not too surprising considering she came from an educated family. On all census records both her parents are listed as being able to read and write.
While Emma studied at Robinson, she changed her middle name from ‘Jane’ to ‘Louise Chapell,’ for reasons that have not been determined. It is not unusual to find name changes among the girls who attended the Seminary. The name they used when first admitted might be quite different from the one they used later. Gertrude Ethel Walker, a classmate of Emma, dropped ‘Gertrude’ from her name. Emma Jackson did genealogists a great favor by consistently signing her name “Emma L.C. Jackson.” There are few young Black women with two middle names in the early 20th century. Emma graduated in 1897, giving her oration on “Nevada’s License” – a condemnation of lax gambling laws – at commencement.
The family lived on Marlboro Street, where a house was purchased in Margaret’s name in 1895. It was common to place a deed in the wife’s name to protect business assets. Junius’s hairdressing business needed financial protection. The home purchased by promissory note for $1100. Margaret and Junius paid it by 1900 but took out another mortgage for $600 that same year. Emma left Exeter to teach school – travelling to Wilmington, Delaware for several years. As a young Black woman, she probably found it difficult to find teaching jobs in New Hampshire. Long after her death, local historian Roland Sawyer mentioned that she had been a teacher in Roxbury and Haverhill, but he got several key parts of her biography wrong, so it is difficult to determine where he obtained his information.
Emma returned to Exeter in time for the 1900 census, where she is listed as a ‘teacher.’ Perhaps she was visiting her parents’ home. Junius, meanwhile, continued to run his hairdressing parlor, offering not only shaving and hair-cutting but also, “shampooing for Ladies Tuesday and Friday afternoons. First class work.” In 1906, he and other local barbers banded together to form a business organization. Junius was elected as treasurer. At the meeting, it was decided that all barber and hairdressing shops would close on Mondays at 1pm.
Emma lived in Boston, but returned to town when her father’s health began to fail in 1910. Junius died at home on April 29, 1912, at the home he and Margaret had purchased on Marlboro Street. A neighbor, Harriet Tilton, offered the family a spot in her family plot in the Exeter Cemetery. Margaret sold the home and moved to Boston with Emma, who started a second career as a hospital clerk. They remained in Boston for the rest of their lives.
There are no identified photos of any members of the family in the collections of the Exeter Historical Society. However, there is one tantalizing image from the Smith glass plates that might be Junius’s salon. Taken in 1903 when his business was located on the second floor of the Merrill Block, the image shows three hairdressing chairs and two men. Although we cannot be sure, it is possible that this was the shop of Junius Jackson, and it is also possible that the man posing as a customer is Junius himself. We may never know for sure.
Image: This photo, from the Smith Glass Plate collection, shows the interior of a hairdressing salon. It was taken in Exeter in 1903 with no identifying information. There has been some speculation that the man posing as a customer in the chair is Junius Jackson, a well-known hairdresser in town from 1889 – 1912.
Barbara Rimkunas is curator of the Exeter Historical Society. Support the Exeter Historical Society by becoming a member! Join online at: www.exeterhistory.org.