The 1908 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory contains this intriguing entry:

Who was Alberta Blueford? Women barbers were not unheard of in Wilson, but were quite rare. Blueford does not appear in any other Wilson County records. Lodgers Alberta Bluford, 38, hairdresser in beauty parlor, and Emma Bluford, 62, both born in North Carolina, were enumerated in the 1940 census of New York, New York, but, intriguing as it is, this is not likely the same person. Barber Blueford was surely more than six years old. Also, Emma and Alberta Bluford are readily traceable to Asheville, North Carolina.