CORNELIUS, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — There are many ways to look back. Sometimes, it’s those memories captured in faded photographs or dusty awards hung on the wall. But, over at Potts Barber Shop in Cornelius, it doesn’t take much to remember.
“My name is Gerald, but all I get is Mickey,” laughed ‘Mickey’ Potts.
For 65 years, 85-year-old Mickey has been cutting hair at his family’s barber shop in downtown Cornelius.
“Lord, I have no idea how many heads I’ve cut,” said Mickey.
Inside, some things have stayed the same since it opened back in 1952.
“We had to work on the hydraulics on some of them, but some of them we didn’t have to do a thing to them,” said Mickey, pointing to the barber chairs.
But the town outside the store front hasn’t stayed the same.
“It’s bittersweet we know growth is coming, you know. But just like the barber shop, we’d like to hold on to something from our era,” said Mickey.
For generations, Potts has been the place for everyone. It started with Mickey’s dad, Wilson, and then later went to him.
“I feel great to be able to see some of the people that I’ve known for a long time,” said Mickey.
While you can’t stop time, the memories being made at the barber shop now have a permanent place in history.
“It was something, I’m sure Dad would have been proud of,” said Mickey.
Just outside the shop, a new historical designation is hung to the building, marking it as a historical landmark. It’s a reminder that properly moving forward requires knowing where it all began.
At 85, Mickey still cuts hair on Saturdays. Though it’s not much, he said, he loves coming down to the shop and connecting with the people he’s known for decades.