Beverly Eagle RogersMrs. Cora Jones "Boot" McLeod is a historical figure in the Durham, NC, African American communities. She was born in the hot summer of 1918. In 1932, her father, Rev. Junious Jones, relocated his wife and children from Wake County to Durham City, whre Miss Cora attended the local schools. She was the knee-baby girl of twelve Jones children.DeShazor's Beauty School offered a six-month training program, and in August 1943, Mrs. McLeod graduated as a top beautician. She had married James McLeod, Sr., and was a happy mother of a brown-eyed baby boy, James, Jr.The famed Hayti Community was the heart of Durham's African Americans' retail and had become a viable part of their economic growth and development after the Great Depression. Mrs. McLeod linked her talents and entrepreneurial spirit with the spirit of Hayti.Along with two beauticians, Mrs. McLeod created the Tip Top Beauty Shop on the famous Pettigrew Street. It was a thriving business where many new beauticians received on- the-job training and professional leadership from the owners.Affected by urban renewal and the freeway expansion in 1965, Mr. and Mrs. McLeod built a private, in-home beauty salon affectionately named McLeod's Beauty Nook, where she shared her gift of cosmetology for fifty more years. Read More Read Less