Elderly couple found dead, murder/suicide suspected

By By Clif Knight, Hartselle Enquirer
A retired barber and his wife were found dead in their Hartselle home Saturday, June 20, in what police have said was a case of murder-suicide.
The bodies of Osbon E. Crauswell, who operated Crauswell’s Barber Shop on Highway 31 North, for 42 years and his wife, Nellie Gean, both 78, were discovered at their 756 Martin Street home by a family member at about noon on Saturday. Hartselle police investigators arrived at approximately 12:30 p.m. to investigate, according to Lt. Justin Barley.
Investigator Barley said both died of gunshot wounds and were found at different locations in their home. Morgan County Coroner Russ Beard pronounced death at 4 p.m. and ordered the bodies to be sent to the State Forensics Laboratory in Huntsville for autopsies.
Friends and neighbors described the Crauswells as a devoted, loving couple that had been married and lived in the same neighborhood for many years. They were parents of two daughters, three grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Crauswell, a native of Cullman County, was a career barber with 60 years of experience. He began cutting hair for 35 cents a head on the back porch of his family’s home in Cullman County and a high school student, He relocated to Hartselle in 1959 where he worked as a barber at the former Pope. Barber hop on Main Street. Four years later he and another barber opened Creswell’s Barber Shop. He retired Oct. 1, 2006 after barbering for 42 years in the same location.
Crauswell had the reputation of being a soft-spoken and warm-hearted barber who cut hair for less than anybody in town. He cut only men’s hair and specialized in close-cropped cuts and still used a straight razor to shave around the ears.