The Lubbock Centennial 1909-2009 - presented by The Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Storekeeper, lawyer laid groundwork

62
George Singer
1843-1910

The springs near the current Lubbock Lake Landmark provided a gathering site from prehistoric times. George W. Singer saw opportunity there too.

The countryside was rife with buffalo hunters, cavalry troopers, cattlemen and American Indians.

In 1879 Singer brought two wagons, one carrying lumber and the other merchandise, to the last waterhole in Yellowhouse Canyon. Above that small lake he built what author W.C. Holden described as “an 18-foot square boxed structure,” the first in what would become Lubbock. His store became the first official post office in 1884.

The store burned to the ground in 1886 in a fire started by a “demented” man, but Singer rebuilt a half mile up the canyon. He remained there until the townsite for Lubbock was set and Singer moved his store to what is now the northeast corner of Main Street and Buddy Holly Avenue.

Singer, his wife and two children left Lubbock shortly before 1900, saying that he wanted his children to receive a proper education.

61
Charles C. Crenshaw
1886-1964

Charles Crenshaw was co-founder of one of Lubbock’s most prestigious law firms, now known as Crenshaw, Dupree and Milam.

In 1926 he moved to Lubbock from Hillsboro to form a partnership with Sen. W.H. Bledsoe. George Dupree joined them two years later and the firm became Bledsoe, Crenshaw and Dupree.

Crenshaw’s entry into the legal community took an unusual route after spending his childhood in Fort Worth. Most stenographers were men in those days and he saw his way to make a living. He studied typing and landed a job as a court reporter for the next 16 years. He developed an interest in law and studied at home for years. At the insistence of his wife, he took and passed the bar exam in 1916 with that year’s highest average.

His career took him to Hillsboro and then to Lubbock. Although the firm accepted criminal cases, Crenshaw’s interest in the finer points of law led him to handle more civil cases.

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