McCORDSVILLE – What was once a caboose barbershop has been turned into a coffee shop, creating a community hub while also carrying on the legacy of someone who, quite literally, left his tracks and impact in McCordsville.
Since the March 15 grand opening of Coffee at the Crossing, owner Ja’Nene Gillam said the support of the community has been amazing, including some who used to see her father, Gary, for a haircut.
The barbershop opened in 1972 where Gillam’s father worked out of a house off Mt. Comfort Road. In 1995, he converted the train caboose into the shop it was known for, decorating the inside and outside with train memorabilia.
Gillam said that she had worked in the corporate business for 17 years, and after the passing of her father in 2022, she decided she would continue to use the caboose and open her own business. With the shop left for Gillam in her father’s will, she took the shop off the market and got to work.
The idea for a coffee shop came from Gillam and her husband’s (Brian) shared passion for coffee. Gillam also said that McCordsville needed a community hub, something her father offered through his barbershop for decades.
Being newly empty nesters, Gillam said this has given her and Brian a chance to work on something together outside of raising their two, now adult, children. The coffee shop offers their train-themed menu, such as the loco lattes. While they are on a limited menu for the time being, Gilliam said they plan to add onto their many drink choices, scones, muffins and more.
Gillam said starting up the coffee shop and carrying on her father’s legacy was a little scary at first.
“He was such a good man, and you hope you’re as much as a good person as he was,” Gillam said.
Construction consisted of demolition of the old house and moving the caboose on the tracks just a little more east, creating more room for the widening of Mt. Comfort Road. They then added to the west side of the caboose, which houses where the coffee is made.
Gillam said construction took approximately a year with just a few setbacks along the way, one of those being hooked up to city water since her father was still on well water.
The caboose now serves as a seating area, featuring train tracks and photos of Gillam’s father along the walls, much like a timeline showing his journey of success captured through the camera. The shop also features a variety of seating options, one of which includes a checkers table, the same game Gillam would play in her father’s barbershop.
Being located near the currently under construction McCord Square, Gillam said she is excited to see McCordsville grow even more and evolve. Growing up in McCordsville, Gillam said she has seen many changes throughout the town, such as when the bait shop next door became a CVS Pharmacy.
“Some people say change is inevitable and it is … but you can either buck it or you can get on the train and ride it. See where it takes you,” Gillam said.
On March 26, it’ll be two years since Gary lost his battle to cancer. However, Gillam said it has felt like her father has been there during the journey of getting the coffee shop up and running.
Gillam said that even some people who helped with the caboose in the mid-90s, came back to help with the new building.
“Whenever we needed an electrician, whenever we needed a plumber, whenever we needed something to help, it was almost like my dad just kind of sent someone, one of his friends or old customers,” Gillam said. “I felt my dad had something to do with that.”
Gillam said she wishes her father was with her to see the shop transform, and knows he would be chatting and playing checkers with someone.
He’d always win.
Gillam said the most eye-opening thing about her journey over the past two years is that, after someone passes, it’s discovered how much of an impact one individual can have on a community, and that it is important to tell people how special they are.
Gillam said she’s glad to be able to provide a place for the community to gather, take a moment to set the phone down and enjoy each other’s company.
“It’s a fast-paced world that we live in, and this is kind of taking you back in time a little bit,” said Gillam, mentioning that they’ve mixed an old style in with the new for the theme of the shop. “Life goes too fast, it does. Have a cup of coffee with a friend for a few minutes and chat.”
