The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-05-18
BARBER POLES.
Modern Styles and Decorations = Some
Poles Are of Iron.

iron, which has bands and other orna-
mental projections and is painted in
the same manner as wooden pole. An
other western pole has four upright
strips of iron, around which are wound
spirally other iron strips. making lat
ticed pole. The spiral encircling strips
are so painted as to form the usual
stripes. There is talk now of alumni
ium barber poles, which would be
much more expensive, but would be of
extreme durability and could always be
sold at so much pound
In the east the barber poles used are
almost all made of wood, and in fact
the barber poles everywhere are princi
use is soft maple.
Barber poles are made in various
sizes, but standard full size poles are
made and 10 feet in length and from
to IL inches in circumference. They
are sometimes made IA inches in cir
conference, but that is unusual. There
is now in force in this city an ordinance
requiring that outside barber poles shall
be kept within the stoop line, and that
they shall not exceed o feet in height.
Before the adoption Of that ordinance
the large pole most commonly used i'll
this city was 10 feet in height and 10
! inches in diameter Since the ordinance
| came into force there has been here an
| increased use of door poles and window
poles, these being very much slender
err, and in the case of the window poles
| 81
stand beside the doorway or entrance.
In the case of q basement shop, where
the poles would be at the beginning of
the steps, and so in sight along the
sidewalk, they are placed upright.
When placed beside ground floor door
way, they are slanted outward slightly,
so that the top projects beyond the
building front. The window poles,
which are short little poles with q gid
ed ball at each end, are fixed at an an
gle to iron brackets secured to the win
dow casing. A barber is likely to use
two door poles, one on either side OF
the door, and he may use window poles
ALSO so that in this city the number Of
poles used is greater than ever before
though it may be that their aggregate
bulk is no larger than that of the small
er number of larger poles that once
stood by the curbstones, or were other
wise conspicuously placed
There have been made barber poles
with spiral stripes simulated by stripe!
painted diagonally on tapering strips o
board. Years ago, too, there were mad'
some barber poles Of four strips of board
tapering and nailed together, maxim.
an obelisk shaped sign, which wa
striped in the usual way. But the pole
usually in some simple form, was tn
common thing, and this developed grad
ually into the more elaborate pole nov
> commonly used, which is made wit
perhaps bands or other shapes turned o
otherwise fastened upon it, and wit
: greater riches and variety of ornamonta
ton Pretty much all poles are SUI
mounted by gilded ball Other shapes
pear, for instance-have been mad
for finish, but the ball is the mos
popular. With the more elaborate poles
with bands and carvings and panels
4 and with the spaces of the length nor
l broken up. came more elaborate style
of coloring, and more or less departuI
{, from the usual spiral stripes. poles BEN
: painted with the conventional color'
but with diamond shapes. and so on
. But now, while poles are made as elat
{ orately as ever in shape, there is rathe
: more simplicity of coloring. and III
n most elaborate of poles are pretty SUI
e TO show the spiral stripping somewhere
g the clear spaces on the pole between tn
ornamental designs being thus painted
Less blue is used in stripes than fo
{ merly, the stripes being now usually
!, red and white, and the red general
4 used is q shade darker than formerly
;. More gold than ever is now used on I'll
n big ornamental poles. Besides, on II
! tops it is sometimes used III stars an
: other gilded Communication, and thel
i are poles of various sizes made wit
: spiral gold stripes on black body II
- stead of a white body. These cost MOI
a than poles striped in colors, but the Vi
q of them is increasing. More black al
It gold poles are used in the west. whe
$. people seem to spend more money
II barber poles than in the east. But e
5 erywhere the spiral stripes are the ba
: ber's symbol, whether they are paintt
), on q pole specially designed for sig
;, or ON telegraph pole, or. as may som
70 times be seen in smaller places, aroui
a the trunk of tree New York Sun
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