Bend resident Lucy Halverson, 83, says she sat in the Thomas the horse barbershop seat to get haircuts when she was a kid. “My two sons sat on this,” Halverson said. Halverson is seen with Thomas at the Metropolitan Barber Shop in downtown Bend on Thursday.

No one’s sure exactly how many riders he has carried through their first haircuts, but it’s safe to say Thomas the horse has seen a lot of manes get trimmed.

Thomas — the name for the wooden, horse-headed antique barber chair — is the seat closest to the window at Metropolitan Barber Shop in downtown Bend. The Metropolitan has been in its current location since 1923, and Thomas has served as the preferred seat for young children ever since.

Built in Chicago in 1910 by the Theo A. Kochs Co., Thomas will turn 100 this year, and Metropolitan manager Stan Whitton has no plans to put him out to pasture any time soon.

Rather, Metropolitan staff will celebrate Thomas’ centennial birthday next weekend (see “If you go”). The party begins Saturday at 8 a.m. and continues till 2 p.m., with free haircuts for kids 10 and younger, free sodas and lollipops. Donations will also be accepted for Bethlehem Inn, a homeless shelter in Bend.

The number of kids who have had their first haircuts astride Thomas is likely in the thousands, says Whitton, whose father-in-law, Bob McBride, purchased the barbershop 2 1/2 years ago.

Thomas has been reupholstered at least once, says Whitton, who isn’t sure if Thomas’ rich dark coat has ever seen a touch up. Formerly known as “Blacky,” the chair was rechristened “Thomas” by Whitton’s son, Chase, 6, with Whitton’s blessing.

Whitton has been cutting hair for 13 years, and has seen young customers of all sorts, from compliant kids to the ones who put up a resistance.

“We’ve seen it all,” Whitton says. “We’ve actually had a barber go down from the horse. Their feet can kind of flop and just — right in the sweet spot.”

Kids make up about 10 percent of the clientele. The experience of cutting young children’s hair is “about 50-50. It’s either going to be a great experience or a complete nightmare,” Whitton says.

When they have young customers, barbers at Metropolitan take turns cutting their hair. However, “We have an old-timer who won’t cut kids’ hair. He just refuses,” Whitton says, laughing.

Thomas does help rein in the customers, says Whitton. “Anything novel (helps). It’s funny; kids don’t want a haircut, and then they sit and they look at the horse and they see other kids do it, and they say, ‘OK, I’ll give it a shot.’”

The first barber shop to stand in this spot on Wall Street was the Pioneer Barber Shop, established by Creed Triplett, according to a series of historical photographs and placards on the wall of the Metropolitan. That location was destroyed by fire in 1912. Triplett relocated the Pioneer to nearby Oregon Avenue, and later sold it to a new owner, who renamed it the Metropolitan Barber Shop. In 1923, it moved to its present location, and, according to the placards, is the oldest ongoing business in downtown Bend.

When The Bulletin visited the barbershop Monday, Lucy Halverson, 83, was talking to Whitton.

“My father came in 1929,” Halverson says. Her uncle, Roy Slate, and his brother Joe were the first two owners of The Metropolitan, she says, and her uncle Roy likely encouraged her father to move to Bend for mill work.

“My two sons sat on this,” says Halverson. Younger son Bruce is 54 today; her older son, Bill, passed away. Halverson stopped in after hearing about Thomas’ birthday party, and wanted to understand how the horse came to be 13 years older than the shop itself.

People have offered to buy Thomas, Whitton says. A previous owner — Whitton’s father-in-law is the fifth owner, he says — was offered a large sum to sell it, according to Whitton.

“He wanted to buy a motorcycle, and the guy brought in 5,000 bucks, cash. ‘You can buy your motorcycle if you sell the horse,’” Whitton says. “He kept the horse, thank God.”

“I’m glad, too,” Halverson says.

Does Thomas have a selling price?

“You name a price,” Whitton says, before adding, “No, no, we wouldn’t sell it.”

“You wouldn’t sell it,” Halverson says.

“No, we couldn’t. There’s no way we could.”