Augustus "Gus" Barber (February 21, 1927 – November 21, 2008) was an American businessman and founder of Barber Foods. Born in 1927 to

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

parents who fled the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was ...

, Barber served in the

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and later became a ship welder at the

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

docks. In 1955 Barber opened up Barber Beef and Poultry, later to be known as Barber Foods. Barber was one of the first meat cutters to offer cut up chicken parts such as legs and thighs while most traders offered whole chickens. In later years the company became kitchen based and had 800 employees. Half of Barber's work force were immigrants, he always had pledged to other people. He offered English lessons to his employees on site. He retired as chairman in 2002. Barber died on November 21, 2008, after going into cardiac arrest.Augustus Barber; founded Maine's Barber Foods; dies at 87
''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

References

External links

Barber Foods
{{DEFAULTSORT:Barber, Augustus 1927 births 2008 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American people of Armenian descent Businesspeople from Portland, Maine Ethnic Armenian businesspeople