Crews
Crews, Runnels County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Settled in 1880s. Named for C. R. Crews, Ballinger businessman. Mrs. Betty Sims was earliest voluntary teacher-mail carrier. School was built 1890 (with the Rev. Mr. Lockhart, first teacher). Post office established 1892 in Wise and brought store; first postmaster, J. D. Wise. Methodist church was organized in 1890; Baptist church in 1894. Later 11 businesses were in operation; by 1930 school had 7 teachers. The doctors serving longest were F. M. Hale, C. A. Watson, R. E. Burrus. Post office closed 1922; school consolidated with others 1948. The churches are still active.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Settled in the 1880s and named for Ballinger businessman C. R. Crews, this Runnels County community organized quickly around its institutions—a school in 1890, a post office in 1892, and Methodist and Baptist churches by the mid-1890s. At its height Crews supported eleven businesses and a seven-teacher school. The post office closed in 1922 and the school consolidated away in 1948, but the churches remain active.
Why it matters
Crews traces the full arc of a small West Texas farm town—rapid founding, brief bustle, and slow decline—that played out across the rural Plains.
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Related people
- · C. R. Crews
- · Betty Sims
- · J. D. Wise
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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