This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!
Eddie Murphy the Cedar Rapids shoeshine man a pioneer
Eddie Murphy born 1909 in Otterville built a Cedar Rapids shoeshine business at the Montrose Hotel after cataracts left him nearly blind. He used a white cane and relied on clients to name shoe polish colors while training with a guide dog named Sport in 1956. He kept a meticulous clean area and even offered to clean the nearby men’s room for a week to prove his reliability.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Dward R. Murphy
Edward B
Elizabeth Murphy
Murphy
Murphy Transfer Co
Cedar Rapids
Otterville
Eddie” Murphy
Montrose Hotel
Gazette
Evelyn
Mental Health Institute
Independence
Iowa Executive Council
Des Moines
Iowa
Cedar Rapids Lions Club
Rochester
Mich
Detroit
Sport
Eddie Murphy
Union