Otto Oberle Collection

Summary: Donor's father, Otto Oberle, Sr., worked as a barber in Fort Worth during the first half of the twentieth century. He moved to Fort Worth from Germany in 1914 and opened a barber shop in the Neil P. Anderson Building where he and his staff offered free haircuts to children from three local institutions - the Masonic Home, the Tarrant County Orphan's Home, and the Lena Pope Home. Later, Oberle worked with legislator Doyle Willis to make it a requirement for barbers to be licensed in the State of Texas. The items in this collection relate to Oberle's career as a barber.

• Three black and white photographs of Oberle's barber shop, circa 1920s.
• Various newspaper clippings regarding Oberle, 1920s-1940s.
• Fort Worth Kiwanis News, Tuesday, March 27, 1934, Texas Hotel, 12:15 Underprivileged Child Program, official weekly publication.
• Program for the Sixth Annual Convention of the Texas Association of Barbers, "It Pays to Look Well," held at the Westbrook Hotel, Fort Worth, Texas, May 9-10, 1932.
• Letter of congratulations from the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce upon Oberle's election as President of the Associated Master Barbers of Texas, August 23, 1940.
• Letter of thanks for his work with underprivileged children from R.M. Bowen,President of the Kiwanis of Fort Worth, December 9, 1934.

Pictured: "Look Well Week" at the Neil P. Anderson Barber Shop on June 9-16, 1928. Otto Oberle, Sr., is fifth from right.