W. L. Lipscomb
Edinburg, Hidalgo County, Texas
Marker Inscription
About 1880, South Carolina native William Lawton Lipscomb (1874-1941) came to Texas with his family. In 1894 he settled in Hidalgo County, where he managed a sugar plantation. Later he and his wife, Ada (Dougherty) (1877-1959), moved to Edinburg and established one of the city's first general mercantile stores. Lipscomb moved his business to this building after it was completed in 1910. As an Hidalgo County commissioner from 1909 until 1925, a prominent businessman, and an active Mason, Lipscomb provided significant service and leadership to the community. (1983)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
William Lawton Lipscomb came to Texas as a boy around 1880 and by 1894 had settled in the Rio Grande Valley's Hidalgo County, first managing a sugar plantation and later opening one of Edinburg's earliest general stores. In 1910 he moved his mercantile business into this newly finished building, running it while serving sixteen years as a county commissioner. His career captures the commercial coming-of-age of the lower Valley in the early twentieth century, as railroads and irrigation turned ranch country into towns.
Why it matters
Lipscomb's store and public service reflect how merchant-officials knit together the emerging towns of South Texas during the Valley's boom decades.
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Related people
- · William Lawton Lipscomb
- · Ada Dougherty Lipscomb
Themes & tags
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