Ask St. Louisans who attended Ashland Elementary School where they hung out as kids. They most likely spent their afternoons looking for records at Sound Town or chowing down with friends at Mandarin Inn. If you ask them where they bought shoes, their eyes will light up. The answer is almost certain to be Yellow Ball Shoe Repair and Store.
Not only did they buy Hushpuppies or Converse sneakers at Yellow Ball, the store also was an institution in the surrounding Penrose community. Its owner, James W. Pearson Sr., was at its center.
Born in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, in 1925, Pearson spent most of his life in St. Louis. As a graduate of Washington Technical High School, Pearson sought out a trade with which he could earn a living and landed on shoe repair.
In 1943, Pearson was drafted and served in the United States Air Force in the Pacific before being honorably discharged in 1946. Two things stuck with him after his military service: a strong work ethic and a nickname, “Yellow Ball.”
Using benefits provided by the GI Bill, Pearson opened Yellow Ball Shoe Repair and Store in late 1946. In the then-bustling corridor of Franklin Avenue at 22nd Street, Pearson’s shop attracted a variety of customers, white and black.
In the late 1960s, as urban renewal continued its slow creep westward across the St. Louis landscape, Yellow Ball was forced to relocate. Reopening at 4338 Natural Bridge Ave. near the intersection with Newstead Avenue, Yellow Ball Shoe Repair and Store quickly reestablished its popularity.
Situated near Ashland Elementary School, Pearson’s shop became the primary destination for those looking to buy the latest in shoewear. As the store grew, Yellow Ball also became a one-stop shop for a variety of goods besides shoes, from custom-made keys to sunglasses and, of course, candy.
Ask anyone their fondest memory of Yellow Ball, and those memories will consistently include two things: toe taps and slushies. Everyone loved to have Mr. Pearson attach heel caps or toe taps to their shoes. And everyone loved his slushies.
But shoes were only half of James Pearson’s life. The other half was his family.
Married in 1942, Pearson and his first wife Pauline raised three sons, Lonnel, James Jr. and Stephen. Two more sons, Barry and Mark, were born after Pearson’s second marriage in 1952. In 1959, James married Ada, the woman most folks remember working the register at Yellow Ball. James and Ada had two children, Grace and Eric. Every one of his children put in time helping Pearson in the shop.
When not working at Yellow Ball, the family traveled, often to spots where James could relax and unwind with a fishing rod; fishing was his most cherished pastime. Despite keeping the store open six days a week for many years, Pearson often woke up early on Sunday mornings to fish quietly on the Mississippi River, bringing home foot-long catfish as his prize.
On occasion, James and Ada attended wrestling matches at the Kiel Auditorium and enjoyed watching boxing as well. As a sign of the popularity of Yellow Ball’s brand, Ada noted that hometown boxer, Leon Spinks – at one time the undisputed heavyweight boxing champion – was a loyal customer.
Standing apart from many, Pearson remained in his community for 67 years, witnessing first-hand the consequences of urban renewal and population flight. Through it all, Pearson remained determined to stay, offering shoes, candy, slushies and conversation to all who entered his shop.
In 1995, Mayor Freeman Bosley Jr. awarded James and Ada a proclamation recognizing the shop’s longevity and proclaiming November 24, 1995, as “James Pearson Sr. Day in St. Louis.”
One customer summed up Pearson’s powerful effect on his St. Louis neighborhood with the following poem:
Can a shoeman do magic?
I know a magic shoeman. He can fix any shoe you bring. He will take a shoe and do his do.
There is no shoe that he cannot fix. If there is – it’s unknown to me.
He has been a magic shoeman for a long long time you see, for sixty years and counting, and still strong as can be.
He is the magic shoeman, you need to drop by and see.
James W. Pearson Sr. passed away on Friday, May 6, 2016.
