The venerable shoe shine business is still alive today. Anywhere there's crowds of people, someone will make a living shining the shoes of all those passers-by. In 1962 Otis Lowe was shining the shoes of throngs of Hanford workers. And working a few angles himself.

By Al Parkins Published Sept. 17, 1962

If a monetary value could be placed on friends, Otis Lowe would probably be one of the richest men in Richland.

Lowe's list of friends has been steadily growing since December, 1943 when he stepped off a train at Pasco, en route to Hanford.

Lowe, who likes to be called "Otie," has been meeting scores of people each day while shining shoes at Ganzel's Barber Shop in Richland. In fact, Otie says, "I number my friends by the thousands,:

The 63-year-old shoe-shiner has been at his "two-seater" at Ganzel's since 1945, when he quit Hanford.

"I guess I've been shining shoes, off and on, for 50 years," the white-thatched Richlander recalled. "I started with my brushes and rags when I was 13 years old, back in my hometown of Clarksville, Tenn.

Otie spruced-up Clarksville residents' shoes 14 years in a small barbershop before leaving for greener pastures.

When Otie first sighted Richland the town was a few wooden buildings. George Washington Way was a two-way graveled street.

At Hanford Otie took up shoe shining as a sideline while working in the hospital. The barber shop, where he worked at night, was adjacent to the camp tavern and he made the most of it.

Construction workers could develop powerful thirsts and descend on the tavern by hordes. Since state law required patrons to be seated, chairs became scarce when the tavern became crowded.

Early in the afternoon, when business at the bar was slow, Otie would "borrow" six or seven chairs and put them in a closet at the barber shop.

The law of supply and demand soon was evident when the bar filled up and Otie "sold" the chairs to the cotton-throated drinkers for $2 each.

After Otie gave up Hanford, he settled in Richland and "cornered" the shoe shine business at Ganzel's. The shop at one time was the largest shop in the area with 16 chairs.

Otie remembers when 400-500 men-per-day would pass through the whirring, clipping and snipping swarm of barbers. At that time, too, he was buffing Hanford sand off scores of shoes.

Otie never kept any records on how many pairs of shoes a day he could knock out, but says a can of wax never lasted long.

"I used to do six or seven pairs an hour," he recalled. "Now it takes 10-15 minutes. I've slowed down a lot and talk a lot more than I used to."

"With my conversation, I just can't finish a pair of shoes in the same time as the old days. I guess I'm getting old."

Asked if he was planning to retire, Otie shook his head. "They tell me you don't live long after retiring. I wouldn't have anything to do with my life."

Otie is a familiar figure at Richland sporting events. He knows and can relate the records and accomplishments of Gene Conley, Pat Crook, John Myers, Dave Brucey, Whitey Shil and several other Richland athletes.

The conversation ended as a customer came in and Otie picked up his tools. "Hello, Mr._ the wife still have a little back trouble?" Otie asked as he began wiping off the man's shoes.