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Our Legacy — Centennial Dual-Track Timeline

Chapter 01

1927–1937

Origins in the Harper Theater Lobby

1927
THE BEGINNING
OF A COMMUNITY
TRADITION
Harper Theater entrance and 53rd Street in the 1920s
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Chicago enters a period of extraordinary cultural and architectural growth.
  • Hyde Park flourishes around the University of Chicago and the vibrant 53rd Street commercial corridor.
  • The Great Migration continues reshaping Chicago’s South Side demographics and culture.
  • The 1933–34 Century of Progress World’s Fair draws millions of international visitors to Chicago.
Vintage barber shop interior and chair in the 1920s
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 1927 Founding: Established at 1464 E. 53rd Street inside the historic Harper Theater complex (built in 1911).
  • When the theater's main entrance was shifted to Harper Avenue, the original 440-square-foot entrance corridor was enclosed into a storefront for rental income, retaining its mosaic ceramic tile flooring.
  • Founded and operated by barber Joe Taylor as Taylor’s Barber Shop (historically recorded as G. & T. Barbershop), running three chairs during the Great Depression.
  • Builds a loyal following of neighborhood residents, tradespeople, and University scholars.
Chapter 02

1937–1947

Community Through Depression and War

1937
COMMUNITY
THROUGH DEPRESSION
& WAR
Chicago wartime industrial mobilization and South Side streets
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Chicago emerges from the Great Depression and becomes a major wartime industrial and production hub.
  • World War II transforms Chicago’s workforce, civic institutions, and neighborhoods.
  • The Second Great Migration accelerates as Black families arrive from the South seeking defense jobs and opportunity.
  • Hyde Park confronts restrictive covenants and emerging grassroots movements advocating racial equity.
Taylor's Barber Shop serving patrons through the 1930s and 1940s
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • Taylor’s Barber Shop serves as a consistent South Side anchor through wartime rationing and national uncertainty.
  • Generations of Hyde Park families establish the tradition of regular Saturday visits to the 53rd Street shop.
  • The shop cements its standing as essential social infrastructure, where civic news and neighborhood life are debated daily.
Chapter 03

1947–1957

Postwar Crossroads & Urban Renewal Origins

1947
POSTWAR CROSSROADS
& URBAN RENEWAL
ORIGINS
Urban renewal banners and elevated transit in postwar Chicago
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Postwar Chicago experiences dramatic demographic shifts and intense housing pressures.
  • The Hyde Park-Kenwood Community Conference forms in 1949 to champion an intentional, stable interracial community.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court strikes down racially restrictive covenants (Shelley v. Kraemer, 1948).
  • The University of Chicago and the city initiate early planning for massive Urban Renewal programs.
53rd Street storefronts and the historic Harper Theater complex
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 1953 Herald Record: Documented in the Hyde Park Herald on April 22, 1953, anchoring 1464 E. 53rd Street.
  • The shop remains steadfast even as redevelopment reshapes adjacent blocks along 53rd and 55th Streets.
  • Conversations in the barber chair mirror the community's passionate debates over integration and development.
Chapter 04

1957–1967

Civil Rights Milestone & Leroy Cain’s Arrival

1957
CIVIL RIGHTS
& LEROY CAIN’S
ARRIVAL
Civil rights rallies and urban transition on Chicago's South Side
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Urban Renewal clears commercial and residential blocks across Hyde Park; publisher Bruce Sagan acquires the Herald Building and theater complex in 1961.
  • Chicago becomes a pivotal stage for the Civil Rights Movement, culminating in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1966 Chicago Freedom Movement.
  • Tensions mount around neighborhood displacement, balanced by commitments to foster Black business ownership.
Leroy Cain and the newly integrated 53rd Street barbershop
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • January 1964 Record: Taylor’s Barber Shop celebrates 33 years of continuous service at 1464 E. 53rd Street in the Hyde Park Herald.
  • July 1964 Transition: Joe Taylor sells the shop for $2,500 to Leroy Cain, an African American barber and graduate of Moler Barber College (licensed in 1964).
  • Landlord Bruce Sagan readily approves the lease transfer, making King's / Hyde Park Barbershop one of the first Black-owned businesses on 53rd Street.
  • Pioneering Integration: Cain transforms the shop into one of Hyde Park’s first integrated barbershops, training his two retained white barbers to cut Black hair and welcoming clients of all backgrounds.
Chapter 05

1967–1977

Expansion & The Birth of Hyde Park Hair Salon

1967
EXPANSION &
THE BIRTH OF
HYDE PARK HAIR SALON
Muhammad Ali and South Side Chicago cultural icons in the 1970s
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • The Civil Rights era gives way to expanding movements for Black political representation and economic self-determination.
  • Chicago’s South Side solidifies its role as a global powerhouse of Black culture, music, entrepreneurship, and journalism.
  • Hyde Park matures as an internationally recognized progressive, racially integrated neighborhood.
  • Community institutions and independent small businesses act as vital anchors preserving local character.
Inside Hyde Park Hair Salon's expanded six-chair shop
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 1968 Modernization: Leroy Cain expands shop services, introducing manicurist Etta Jones alongside barbers Melvin White and Fred Watley.
  • 1973 Six-Chair Expansion: The Hyde Park Herald highlights Cain’s expansion to six chairs, serving 30–40 patrons daily with razor cuts, styling, shampoos, and shoe shines.
  • 1975 Official Renaming: Upon founding Cain’s Barber College at 365 E. 51st Street, Cain officially renames the business Hyde Park Hair Salon.
  • Legendary Patrons: The shop becomes a South Side magnet, regularly grooming boxing champion Muhammad Ali (who famously arrived in his Rolls Royce), Chicago White Sox owner Bill Veeck, Cuban baseball legend Minnie Minoso, and future Mayor Harold Washington.
Chapter 06

1977–1987

Naim Sabree, "The Shop That Prays," & Harold Washington

1977
THE SHOP THAT PRAYS
& HAROLD WASHINGTON’S
HISTORIC ELECTION
Mayor Harold Washington campaign rallies on Chicago South Side
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Chicago makes national political history in 1983 with the election of Harold Washington as the city’s first Black mayor.
  • Hyde Park serves as an intellectual and operational nerve center for the Washington campaign and South Side civic organizers.
  • Urban barbershops evolve into central public forums for grassroots community empowerment and civic strategy.
Master Barber Naim Sabree and the shop that prays
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 1978 Continuity: The shop’s iconic telephone number, (773) 493-6028, is formally established in Hyde Park business listings.
  • January 1985 Ownership Transfer: Leroy Cain turns over ownership to Naim Sabree, a master barber renowned across the city as the "Curl King."
  • "The Shop That Prays": Under Sabree, the salon introduces an atmosphere of faith and contemplation, curtaining off space toward Mecca for daily Islamic prayers.
  • Barbering Legends: Beloved barbers like Robert "Blade" Butts (who tinted Muhammad Ali’s hair in 1986) and Jafar ("The Soothsayer") set the standard for mentorship and wit.
  • The Obama Thread: Arrival in Chicago In 1985, twenty-four-year-old Barack Obama arrives in Chicago to work as a South Side community organizer.
Chapter 07

1987–1997

Zariff, Ishmael Coye, & Barack Obama's First Cut

1987
ZARIFF, ISHMAEL COYE
& BARACK OBAMA’S
FIRST HAIRCUT
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Barack Obama returns to Chicago following Harvard Law School, marrying Michelle Robinson in 1992 and teaching at the University of Chicago Law School.
  • Obama directs Illinois Project Vote! in 1992, registering over 150,000 voters across Chicago's South and West Sides.
  • In 1996, 13th District voters elect Obama to the Illinois State Senate.
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 1990 Master Barber Zariff Joins: Zariff takes his chair at HPHS, quickly establishing himself as one of Chicago’s foremost master craftsmen.
  • 1992 Ishmael Coye Arrives: At age twenty, licensed cosmetologist Ishmael Coye joins HPHS as its youngest barber, beginning his rise to lead barber and future owner.
  • 1994 Obama Takes His Chair: Barack Obama walks into HPHS and begins a lifelong grooming relationship with Zariff, establishing a bi-weekly ritual that will span over thirty years.
  • The shop continues cutting hair for civic figures including U.S. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., author Michael Eric Dyson, and generations of neighborhood families.
  • The Obama Thread: In Zariff's Chair A decade before national fame, State Senator Obama's bi-weekly Saturday haircut becomes an everyday staple of shop life.
Chapter 08

1997–2007

Cultural Inspiration & The Move to Blackstone

1997
CULTURAL INSPIRATION
& THE HISTORIC MOVE
TO BLACKSTONE AVE
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • Barack Obama's keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention thrusts the South Side senator into the global spotlight.
  • Illinois elects Obama to the U.S. Senate in November 2004 by a landslide margin.
  • In 2005, the Obama family purchases their historic Kenwood home, just a short walk from the barbershop.
  • In February 2007, Senator Obama launches his historic presidential campaign in Springfield, Illinois.
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 2002 Hollywood Inspiration: Screenwriters of the box-office hit movie Barbershop spend hours inside HPHS observing the authentic dialogue, community atmosphere, and barber dynamics.
  • 2004 Keynote Cut: Zariff crafts Obama’s signature cut before his career-defining 2004 DNC speech in Boston.
  • 2007 Historic Relocation: Under Ishmael Coye’s sole ownership, HPHS moves from 1464 E. 53rd Street to its current home at 5234 S. Blackstone Avenue, preserving its vintage chairs and cultural heritage.
Chapter 09

2007–2017

From Blackstone Avenue to the White House

2007
FROM BLACKSTONE
AVENUE TO THE
WHITE HOUSE
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • November 4, 2008: Barack Obama is elected the 44th President of the United States; millions celebrate in Grant Park.
  • Hyde Park and the South Side become the epicenter of global media attention as the home community of the First Family.
  • President Obama is reelected in November 2012, serving two full terms in the White House.
  • Jackson Park is officially selected as the future permanent site of the Obama Presidential Center.
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • 2008 Civic Gathering Site: The Chicago Tribune designates HPHS an official Election Night gathering spot; over 120 patrons, international reporters, and neighbors pack the shop on Blackstone Ave.
  • Barber to the President: Master Barber Zariff travels regularly to the White House, Air Force One, and international summits as President Obama’s personal barber.
  • The Historic Obama Chair: Obama’s dedicated barber chair is preserved behind protective acrylic and signed by the President, becoming an official Illinois Office of Tourism historic destination.
  • Global Media Archive: HPHS is featured prominently by HBO, VICE News, CBS News, CNN, ABC News, WBEZ, The Washington Post, and Chicago Magazine.
  • The Obama Thread: Presidential Era From a South Side barbershop chair to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the authentic Chicago connection remains unbroken.
Chapter 10

2017–2027

Obama Return & Centennial

2017
PRESIDENTIAL RETURN
& A CENTURY OF
TRUST
Illustrative streetscape of 53rd Street and campus area near the Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park
01

Chicago & Hyde Park — The World Around Us

  • The Obama Foundation establishes its permanent headquarters on Chicago's South Side.
  • Construction progresses on the world-class Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park.
  • Hyde Park and Kenwood reaffirm their status as enduring epicenters of African American culture, literature, and enterprise.
  • Chicago’s historic small businesses lead new dialogues on neighborhood preservation, health equity, and youth mentorship.
Illustrative street scene of Hyde Park streetscape representing President Barack Obama's return to the salon and 53rd Street neighborhood
02

HPHS — Our Story

  • December 11, 2025 Presidential Return: President Barack Obama makes a celebrated return visit to Hyde Park Hair Salon, greeting neighbors and sitting once again in Zariff's chair.
  • Community Leadership & Rise Mentorship: Owner Ishmael Coye partners with the Rise Mentorship to create healthcare and medical pathway access for South Side youth.
  • HP Barber Gallery & Film: The salon pioneers art exhibitions connecting fine art with barbering craft, while contributing to the Lines and Fades documentary project directed by Alicia Sams.
  • 2027 Centennial Celebration: HPHS prepares to mark 100 years of continuous service (1927–2027) as a living archive of Chicago’s civic and social history.

A Century of Trust. The Next Chapter.

100 years. Thousands of customers. Countless conversations. One neighborhood institution. Be a part of the next hundred years in the chair.

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