North Neighborhoods
ObituaryNorth: Hector A. DeMucci
His barbershop was hub of conversation in Butler for 44 years
Wednesday, August 07, 2002
By Alisha Hipwell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
For 44 years, men from all walks of life made their way to Hector A. DeMucci's barber shop in downtown Butler, not only for a cut but also for conversation.
In the two-chair, Main Street shop near the county courthouse, local businessmen, judges, attorneys, the sheriff and his deputies, even the accused, came to get a trim and weigh in on the hot topic of the day, whether it was sports, politics or celebrities.
In the fall, talk centered on the Steelers. In the spring, it was the Pirates. When the verdict was announced in the O.J. Simpson case, people crowded into Mr. DeMucci's shop to watch the news on television. Some retirees came every day -- not for a haircut but for the company.
"It was the kind of place that whenever you had an extra five minutes, you'd stop by and say hello. There were people going in and out all the time," said state Rep. Guy Travaglio, D-Butler, a longtime friend of Mr. DeMucci's.
Mr. DeMucci died July 29 in Butler Memorial Hospital following a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was 71.
"I always called him the mayor of South Main Street," Travaglio said.
Mr. DeMucci's illness forced him to close his barbershop in April. Many of his customers had been coming to him since he opened.
"He worked till he couldn't stand up because he absolutely loved that shop," said his wife. The two had been married for 45 years.
Until he closed the shop, Mr. DeMucci gave 500 to 600 haircuts a month, even making house calls to hospitals, the jail, the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center and private homes.
Mr. DeMucci was a man with a sense of justice. In the late '50s, a group of local ministers asked him if he would cut hair for African-Americans in the city. His wife said that at the time no other local shops were willing to do so and African-Americans had to travel to New Castle for a haircut. Mr. DeMucci readily agreed.
In 1998, the Butler County Human Relations Committee awarded Mr. DeMucci the Great Humanitarian Award for being the first area barber to open his doors to African-Americans.
Mr. DeMucci refused to attend the ceremony. "He didn't believe you should get an award for something that was the right thing to do," his wife said.
Although conversation swirled around him all day long and he was privy to his customers' secrets and woes, Mr. DeMucci himself was a rather quiet man.
"He just let them all talk," his wife said.
Mr. DeMucci grew up on the Southside of Butler. Following high school, he was drafted and served as an Army medic in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War. He told his wife his experiences there were much like the popular television show, "M*A*S*H*" -- only a lot less funny.
After his discharge, he worked at the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center for a short time before attending the Pittsburgh Barber School and opening his shop.
He played softball for many years for sandlot and church teams in the Butler area and was known for his formidable pitching.
In addition to his wife, Margaret A. "Peggy" O'Brien DeMucci, Mr. DeMucci is survived by two daughters, Anne Hennon, and Ellen DeMucci; a sister, Mary P. DeMucci; a brother, James V. DeMucci; and a grandson.
A Mass was celebrated Thursday in St. Michael Church in Butler. Interment followed in the church cemetery.
Martin Funeral Home in Butler handled the arrangements.
Edited text from The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
7 Aug. 2002
ObituaryNorth: Hector A. DeMucci
His barbershop was hub of conversation in Butler for 44 years
Wednesday, August 07, 2002
By Alisha Hipwell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
For 44 years, men from all walks of life made their way to Hector A. DeMucci's barber shop in downtown Butler, not only for a cut but also for conversation.
In the two-chair, Main Street shop near the county courthouse, local businessmen, judges, attorneys, the sheriff and his deputies, even the accused, came to get a trim and weigh in on the hot topic of the day, whether it was sports, politics or celebrities.
In the fall, talk centered on the Steelers. In the spring, it was the Pirates. When the verdict was announced in the O.J. Simpson case, people crowded into Mr. DeMucci's shop to watch the news on television. Some retirees came every day -- not for a haircut but for the company.
"It was the kind of place that whenever you had an extra five minutes, you'd stop by and say hello. There were people going in and out all the time," said state Rep. Guy Travaglio, D-Butler, a longtime friend of Mr. DeMucci's.
Mr. DeMucci died July 29 in Butler Memorial Hospital following a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was 71.
"I always called him the mayor of South Main Street," Travaglio said.
Mr. DeMucci's illness forced him to close his barbershop in April. Many of his customers had been coming to him since he opened.
"He worked till he couldn't stand up because he absolutely loved that shop," said his wife. The two had been married for 45 years.
Until he closed the shop, Mr. DeMucci gave 500 to 600 haircuts a month, even making house calls to hospitals, the jail, the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center and private homes.
Mr. DeMucci was a man with a sense of justice. In the late '50s, a group of local ministers asked him if he would cut hair for African-Americans in the city. His wife said that at the time no other local shops were willing to do so and African-Americans had to travel to New Castle for a haircut. Mr. DeMucci readily agreed.
In 1998, the Butler County Human Relations Committee awarded Mr. DeMucci the Great Humanitarian Award for being the first area barber to open his doors to African-Americans.
Mr. DeMucci refused to attend the ceremony. "He didn't believe you should get an award for something that was the right thing to do," his wife said.
Although conversation swirled around him all day long and he was privy to his customers' secrets and woes, Mr. DeMucci himself was a rather quiet man.
"He just let them all talk," his wife said.
Mr. DeMucci grew up on the Southside of Butler. Following high school, he was drafted and served as an Army medic in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War. He told his wife his experiences there were much like the popular television show, "M*A*S*H*" -- only a lot less funny.
After his discharge, he worked at the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center for a short time before attending the Pittsburgh Barber School and opening his shop.
He played softball for many years for sandlot and church teams in the Butler area and was known for his formidable pitching.
In addition to his wife, Margaret A. "Peggy" O'Brien DeMucci, Mr. DeMucci is survived by two daughters, Anne Hennon, and Ellen DeMucci; a sister, Mary P. DeMucci; a brother, James V. DeMucci; and a grandson.
A Mass was celebrated Thursday in St. Michael Church in Butler. Interment followed in the church cemetery.
Martin Funeral Home in Butler handled the arrangements.
Edited text from The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
7 Aug. 2002
North Neighborhoods
ObituaryNorth: Hector A. DeMucci
His barbershop was hub of conversation in Butler for 44 years
Wednesday, August 07, 2002
By Alisha Hipwell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
For 44 years, men from all walks of life made their way to Hector A. DeMucci's barber shop in downtown Butler, not only for a cut but also for conversation.
In the two-chair, Main Street shop near the county courthouse, local businessmen, judges, attorneys, the sheriff and his deputies, even the accused, came to get a trim and weigh in on the hot topic of the day, whether it was sports, politics or celebrities.
In the fall, talk centered on the Steelers. In the spring, it was the Pirates. When the verdict was announced in the O.J. Simpson case, people crowded into Mr. DeMucci's shop to watch the news on television. Some retirees came every day -- not for a haircut but for the company.
"It was the kind of place that whenever you had an extra five minutes, you'd stop by and say hello. There were people going in and out all the time," said state Rep. Guy Travaglio, D-Butler, a longtime friend of Mr. DeMucci's.
Mr. DeMucci died July 29 in Butler Memorial Hospital following a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was 71.
"I always called him the mayor of South Main Street," Travaglio said.
Mr. DeMucci's illness forced him to close his barbershop in April. Many of his customers had been coming to him since he opened.
"He worked till he couldn't stand up because he absolutely loved that shop," said his wife. The two had been married for 45 years.
Until he closed the shop, Mr. DeMucci gave 500 to 600 haircuts a month, even making house calls to hospitals, the jail, the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center and private homes.
Mr. DeMucci was a man with a sense of justice. In the late '50s, a group of local ministers asked him if he would cut hair for African-Americans in the city. His wife said that at the time no other local shops were willing to do so and African-Americans had to travel to New Castle for a haircut. Mr. DeMucci readily agreed.
In 1998, the Butler County Human Relations Committee awarded Mr. DeMucci the Great Humanitarian Award for being the first area barber to open his doors to African-Americans.
Mr. DeMucci refused to attend the ceremony. "He didn't believe you should get an award for something that was the right thing to do," his wife said.
Although conversation swirled around him all day long and he was privy to his customers' secrets and woes, Mr. DeMucci himself was a rather quiet man.
"He just let them all talk," his wife said.
Mr. DeMucci grew up on the Southside of Butler. Following high school, he was drafted and served as an Army medic in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War. He told his wife his experiences there were much like the popular television show, "M*A*S*H*" -- only a lot less funny.
After his discharge, he worked at the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center for a short time before attending the Pittsburgh Barber School and opening his shop.
He played softball for many years for sandlot and church teams in the Butler area and was known for his formidable pitching.
In addition to his wife, Margaret A. "Peggy" O'Brien DeMucci, Mr. DeMucci is survived by two daughters, Anne Hennon, and Ellen DeMucci; a sister, Mary P. DeMucci; a brother, James V. DeMucci; and a grandson.
A Mass was celebrated Thursday in St. Michael Church in Butler. Interment followed in the church cemetery.
Martin Funeral Home in Butler handled the arrangements.
Edited text from The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
7 Aug. 2002
ObituaryNorth: Hector A. DeMucci
His barbershop was hub of conversation in Butler for 44 years
Wednesday, August 07, 2002
By Alisha Hipwell, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
For 44 years, men from all walks of life made their way to Hector A. DeMucci's barber shop in downtown Butler, not only for a cut but also for conversation.
In the two-chair, Main Street shop near the county courthouse, local businessmen, judges, attorneys, the sheriff and his deputies, even the accused, came to get a trim and weigh in on the hot topic of the day, whether it was sports, politics or celebrities.
In the fall, talk centered on the Steelers. In the spring, it was the Pirates. When the verdict was announced in the O.J. Simpson case, people crowded into Mr. DeMucci's shop to watch the news on television. Some retirees came every day -- not for a haircut but for the company.
"It was the kind of place that whenever you had an extra five minutes, you'd stop by and say hello. There were people going in and out all the time," said state Rep. Guy Travaglio, D-Butler, a longtime friend of Mr. DeMucci's.
Mr. DeMucci died July 29 in Butler Memorial Hospital following a lengthy battle with leukemia. He was 71.
"I always called him the mayor of South Main Street," Travaglio said.
Mr. DeMucci's illness forced him to close his barbershop in April. Many of his customers had been coming to him since he opened.
"He worked till he couldn't stand up because he absolutely loved that shop," said his wife. The two had been married for 45 years.
Until he closed the shop, Mr. DeMucci gave 500 to 600 haircuts a month, even making house calls to hospitals, the jail, the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center and private homes.
Mr. DeMucci was a man with a sense of justice. In the late '50s, a group of local ministers asked him if he would cut hair for African-Americans in the city. His wife said that at the time no other local shops were willing to do so and African-Americans had to travel to New Castle for a haircut. Mr. DeMucci readily agreed.
In 1998, the Butler County Human Relations Committee awarded Mr. DeMucci the Great Humanitarian Award for being the first area barber to open his doors to African-Americans.
Mr. DeMucci refused to attend the ceremony. "He didn't believe you should get an award for something that was the right thing to do," his wife said.
Although conversation swirled around him all day long and he was privy to his customers' secrets and woes, Mr. DeMucci himself was a rather quiet man.
"He just let them all talk," his wife said.
Mr. DeMucci grew up on the Southside of Butler. Following high school, he was drafted and served as an Army medic in a Mobile Army Surgical Hospital in Korea during the Korean War. He told his wife his experiences there were much like the popular television show, "M*A*S*H*" -- only a lot less funny.
After his discharge, he worked at the Butler Veterans Affairs Medical Center for a short time before attending the Pittsburgh Barber School and opening his shop.
He played softball for many years for sandlot and church teams in the Butler area and was known for his formidable pitching.
In addition to his wife, Margaret A. "Peggy" O'Brien DeMucci, Mr. DeMucci is survived by two daughters, Anne Hennon, and Ellen DeMucci; a sister, Mary P. DeMucci; a brother, James V. DeMucci; and a grandson.
A Mass was celebrated Thursday in St. Michael Church in Butler. Interment followed in the church cemetery.
Martin Funeral Home in Butler handled the arrangements.
Edited text from The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
7 Aug. 2002
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