Remember When: Last resident of the Effinger Building
Readers may remember an article that appeared here (25 Feb. 2024) titled “Long road from Effinger home to Hotel Lancaster.” As often happens while researching one story, “new” stories are uncovered that beg to be told. Before we move on to building the Hotel Lancaster, we are pausing to “meet” John H. Gardner and “visit” Lancaster about 100 years ago.
John Gardner (34) and his wife Gertrude (33) had married in 1897, and were living in Lancaster in the 1900 Census. By 1908 they were living at 313 Sycamore St. and John’s barber shop was located at 138 S. Broad St., while Mrs. Gardner had a beauty shop in their home. Sadly, Mrs. Gardner died in the Park St. hospital following an operation Oct. 27, 1913. Her funeral was held in their home and she was buried in Athens.
John bought the barber shop of James Goble in the Effinger building in 1914, and conducted a two chair sanitary shop. By 1917 he was listed as a member of the Barber’s Union. The 26 Feb. 1920 Daily Eagle announced the colored members of the Lincoln Republican Club had organized a glee club and John Gardner was chosen president. They were preparing for presidential candidate Senator Warren G. Harding’s visit to Lancaster on 23 April 1920. John’s name was on the list of those selected to meet and greet the candidate.
“Senator Harding must have felt highly complimented with the crowd that greeted him last evening at the city hall auditorium,” especially because “people had waited for an hour and a half before the Harding party pulled in from Logan by automobile.” The colored glee club with fourteen members kept the crowd entertained with their clever singing and excellent voices until the Harding party arrived at 9:30 p.m. “Senator Harding is a very pleasing and impressive speaker and said nothing to offend anyone whether Democrat or Republican.”
However, “A great many were a little surprised when he referred to the late Theodore Roosevelt as one of the greatest men that ever lived, when they recalled some of the words used against Roosevelt by Harding in 1912, when the Republican party was having some rough sailing.”
Sounding much like cost increases today, a notice published 4 May1920 in Daily Eagle reported, “Inasmuch, as the journeymen barbers have asked for an increase in wages and all barber supplies have increased from fifty to two hundred per cent, we the boss barbers of Lancaster feel entitled to a slight increase in prices…beginning May 5, 1920: Hair cut 40 cents, Shave 20 cents, Beard trim 25 cents…”
“Eleven of the nineteen boss barbers of the city, who recently organized…elected permanent officers as follows: Fred Tibbs, President; Oscar Hoyman, Vice President; C. C. Cloud, Secretary; and John Gardner, Treasurer,” reported Daily Eagle 11 May 1920.
We stated above that John Gardner bought the barber shop in the Effinger building in 1914.
Built about 1823, the Effinger House would be 200 years old if still standing today. Its destiny changed when I. J. Collins, President of Hocking Glass Co., purchased it and the property around it in 1928 as an investment. “The buildings included in the deal now house, besides the Effinger homestead, the offices of Dr. C. H. Hamilton and the late Atty. M. A. Daugherty, a large vacant lot west of the small building containing these two offices, Brown’s Paint & Wallpaper Store, J. H. Gardner’s barber shop, Elizabeth L. Webb’s millinery shop, and Stover’s shoe repair shop” (8 Sept. 1928 Daily Eagle). The Daily Eagle announced Oct. 18 that all but the millinery shop and Gardner’s barber shop, had announced their future relocation plans.
The following July 10, 1929, the Daily Eagle reports that Gardner was the sole remaining occupant of the Effinger block, but was moving the next week into the small building in Bank Alley that had been the office of Attorney Daugherty. By 1932 Gardner had moved his barber shop into the Matt Building at 113 E. Main St., and after selling his Sycamore St. home in 1937, he lived at 119½ E. Main St., on the third floor, above the Haas Jewelry Store. He officially retired in 1938 after barbering in Lancaster for almost 40 years.
As early as 1922 if not before, John Gardner was an active member of the A.M.E. Church and served as worship leader, superintendent and pastor as needed. He continued to occupy the pulpit when called upon into the mid-1940s. In 1947 with his health failing, he moved to Russellville, Arkansas to live with his sister. He died there 27 Feb 1950 at 82 years of age.
Readers may contact Harvey at joycelancastereg@gmail.com
This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: The last resident of the Effinger Building
