"Frank Conjurske, Oldest Active Barber in Wisconsin, Is Also a Prolific Inventor" from the February 2, 1960 Door County Advocate
Frank Conjurske, Oldest Active Barber in Wisconsin, Is Also a Prolific Inventor
The oldest active barber in Wisconsin is versatile, 86-year old Frank Conjurske.
Not only has he cut hair for a normal lifespan he is an inventor, father of eight, violin repairman and an excellent pocket billiards player.
He was born, of all places for a barber, in Cologne, Germany, Jan. 14, 1874. The family emigrated to this country when Frank was three years old.
They settled in Shimoken, Pa., where the father became a coal miner. He had been a shoemaker in Germany.
Frank was one of seven children. The others were. Joe, Annie, Cassie, Mary, John and Peter, all but Peter born in Germany. With that many mouths to feed the boys had to go to work early in life. Frank finished fourth grade, then went to work as a slate picker in the mines. His job was to separate the slate from the coal after it was brought out of the earth.
When he was 13 he was promoted to machinist's helper and at 15 was a nightwatchman and maintenance man. He made $2.25 a night, excellent wages in those days.
His brother John moved to Clark county, Wisconsin, acquired three 40's and invited Frank and Peter to join him. They came to Wisconsin and farmed for a short time but Frank didn't like it. John offered him 40 A. but Frank turned it down.
"It was a paradise to get away from those coal fields," Frank admitted, "but I just didn't want to be a farmer. I wanted to be a barber.
So at 16 Frank went to Thorp, Wis., and got a job in a mill that made barrel staves. He watched the men cutting staves and in free time learned to do it himself.
"It was hard work," Frank said, "but I was big for my age, and strong."
Soon he was offered a job as a stave cutter in a mill at Cherry, Wis., 15 miles south of Marshfield. The pay was $3 a day.
It was here that Frank got his first chance at regular barbering. He had cut hair at home for years but at Cherry he went into business on Sundays, giving shaves and haircuts to the mill workers.
Then there was an opening for a full time barber in Stevens Point and Frank was in his chosen vocation to stay. That was 69 years ago.
He was in Stevens Point for a short time, then spent four years barbering in Junction City, between Wausau and Marshfield. There was no road between the two cities and Junction City was a rail stop. Passengers would go for shaves and haircuts while the train was in town.
When the road was put through rail passenger business fell off. A Sturgeon Bay barber, Jim Meyers, was advertising around the state for a barber and Frank responded.
"I liked the idea of being near the water, where I could go fishing," he said.
Industrious Frank was in Sturgeon Bay only a few months when he bought a half interest in Meyer's shop. Then Meyers, a fellow who never stayed in one place very long, told Frank he could have the rest of the business if he assumed a $185 mortgage. Frank took him up on it, made arrangements to pay off the sum at $5 a week. Meyers moved on.
In those days a barber worked long hours. "I worked 83 hours a week," Frank said. Hours were from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. except Saturday, when barbers were sometimes busy until 3 a.m. Sunday morning. A haircut was 25c, shave a dime.
A windmill pumped water for the shop.
Fifty-four years ago Conjurske's landlord raised the rent from $25 to $35 a month. The lot on which the present shop is located was empty so Frank bought it for $1200. He paid cash.
"I watched my nickels," Frank said. "Some days I'd close up the shop at 9 o'clock and have a thirst so I'd go for a beer. If there were four or five of my friends there I figured it would cost me a quarter or more so I wouldn't go in."
Frank put up a building on the lot he bought, going into debt $7,000 to do it.
Even with that load of debt Frank and his wife were able to raise eight children. He and the former Florence Convencke were married in Sturgeon Bay in 1900. She died when she was 80.
Their children are John, a barber in the home shop; Albert, rural mail carrier here; Dorothy, who works for a scalp specialist in Milwaukee; Helen (Mrs. Art Anderson), a beautician; Florence and Mary, beauticians in their father's shop adjacent to the barber shop; Aurelia, who keeps house for her father, and Henry, a barber, who died last year.
Frank branched into beauty work after he taught barbering to sons John and Henry. In World War II both boys entered service and Frank had to run the whole business himself. Barbers were hard to get and some were too independent, Frank said. Many worked a shift at the local shipyard and barbered in their off hours.
I told my boys if the good Lord would let them come back I'd give them the shop, Frank said. He kept his promise.
Henry, incidentally, was drafted in the first dip into the goldfish bowl.
Frank has 15 grandehildren and 32 great grandchildren so far.
The veteran barber has a collection of 10 violins which he enjoys playing and showing. One, a McGinney, has in Frank's estimation as good a tone as a Stradivarius.
Frank asked his parents for a violin when he was 12 years old. Today's common tale of locking the boy in his room to practice worked just the opposite in Frank's case. He wouldn't stop practicing. One night when he was supposed to be in bed he sneaked out, got his violin, locked himself in another room and played. His parents finally chased him to bed.
Sixty years ago Frank played the violin in churches and for dances. In those days it was the schottische, square dances and quadrilles.
The coming of jazz slowed Frank's violin playing.
"'When jazz came in violins went to sleep," Frank said.
Frank still has a reputation as a pool player. One day in a foursome at the Eagles club Frank ran the four ball through the 15 in rotation. The record still stands.
Frank has several inventions, most of them in connection with his business. His Nu-Life hair tonic has been on the market for 35 years. He formulated his own shaving cream for use in his shop but never patented it.
He inverted a stationery hair dryer, with four units in a row. "I was foolish not to patent it," he said.
He invented a sanitary cover for the shampoo board and a face shield used in shampooing. Also an applicator for waving lotion similar to that used in today's home permanent kits.
His latest patented invention is a tie and collar stay. It has the features of the ordinary collar stay plus two prongs that stick into the tie, holding the knot. He made about 100 before he was satisfied enough to apply for a patent.
They sell for $1.25 but Frank says "I wouldn't be without one if they cost $2.00." He has always been a natty dresser.
[author not stated]
Courtesy of the Door County Library Newspaper Archive
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