Lubbock, Texas: The Hub City

The last stop on our journey was Lubbock, Texas. Lubbock is divided into two things: Texas Tech University and Buddy Holly. 

Lubbock was founded in 1867 and named for Thomas Saltus Lubbock. Thomas was a Texas Ranger and the brother of governor Francis Lubbock. It's interested when you read Texas history and see the named of people that you recognize from cities and streets.

There wasn't much happening in Lubbock. There were mostly ranchers (sheep and cattle) and some farmers. In 1891, Lubbock County was formed and the city of Lubbock was named the county seat. They built this cool looking courthouse which only lasted about 24 years. It was moved from it's current site when the next courthouse was built but it eventually caught fire and burned to the ground.

In 1915, this second courthouse was built. It's quite lovely and was in use until 1950. Unfortunately, when Buddy Holly Avenue was extended, this courthouse was demolished. 

In 1950, this courthouse was built. Hmm...it's okay. I think the others have more character but unfortunately, they were both outgrown.

It wasn't until the railroads came to town in the early 1900's that Lubbock really took off. This is the Fort Worth & South Plains Railroad Depot built in 1928. It was part of the Fort Worth & Denver line coming from Estelline in Hall County. This building is now part of the Buddy Holly Center.

So one of the museums we went to was the National Ranching Heritage Museum. It's super cool. This is a Wells Fargo Stagecoach that was used to travel. Six passengers would be crammed inside with luggage on the rack on top. You'd bump along the dusty unpaved roads sitting next to smelly passengers going about 20 miles per day. Think about that the next time you're in a middle seat on an airplane.

The museums also had some historical buildings on the grounds outside. This one, for example, is Long Whiteface Camp named for the white face Hereford cows. This is a two story building that served as a line camp for the cowboys working in the pasture.

It started out as a dugout for a well (that would be the bottom floor that's dug into the ground). The top floor is a room with a bed.

This building is one where cowchips were stored. The little kids in the family were in charge of picking up dried cow piles and storing them in this building. The cowchips would then be used as fuel in the winter to warm the house. That is not a job I would have wanted. 

This is the Barton House. Joseph J. Barton believed a new railroad, Santa Fe's Panhandle Short Line, was to run through his ranch property. To capitalize on that, he built for his family a late Queen Anne-style home as the capstone of his planned community named Bartonsite. The house design was comprised of five rooms and a bath on both of the first and second floors. Amenities included running water, sliding doors, built-in closets, elegant wallpaper and acetylene lighting. The railway bypassed the Hale County, Texas, town, but the Bartons continued to occupy the home for several generations.

This is the Ropes Depot. The wood-frame depot was built by the Santa Fe Railway in Hockley County, Texas. 

The museum is on the campus of Texas Tech University, home of the Red Raiders. It was originally Texas Technical College when it opened in 1923.

In 1969, it became Texas Tech University. I always thought the Red Raider looked mysteriously like Yosemite Sam from Looney Toons. Guns up!

You know who didn't go to Texas Tech? Charles Hardin Holley aka Buddy Holly. No college education and yet he put Lubbock on the map. The Buddy Holly Center is a fun museum that documents the life and times of Buddy Holly. There's a film where the members of the Crickets (his band) talk about making music with him. His brothers talk about his childhood. It's very interesting.

Buddy and Maria Elena Holly Park across from the Buddy Holly Center. When Buddy signed his first recording contract, they misspelled his name and left the "e" out. He decided to just leave it and that became his "stage" name. His career only lasted 18 months before he was killed in a plane crash that also took the lives of Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper.

Buddy is buried at the Lubbock Cemetery. I was surprised there wasn't some big monument. But there's not. He's buried next to his parents.

Buddy Holly Avenue goes the length of the town and right by the county courthouse.

The crosswalk with the Buddy Holly glasses is at the intersection of 18th street and Crickets Avenue, which is right by the Buddy Holly Center.

Right next to the Buddy Holly Center is the J.I. Allison House. J.I. was the drummer in the Crickets and it was in this house that they wrote "That'll Be the Day" along with a lot of their other songs. The docent said the reason they didn't have Buddy's childhood home was because the Holly family lived in several places in Lubbock. I didn't remember that name from The Buddy Holly Story but that's because he had already sold the rights to his story. The movie had to use pseudonyms and blended characters for the band members.

In the Depot District, there were several murals including this old Coca-Cola mural. I've never seen one that mentions the sterilized bottles.

Lubbock was a bit of a surprise. It's definitely a college town. Everyone we saw was wearing red and black and we stuck out like sore thumbs. We were there Saturday and Sunday during school but not football season and it was pretty quiet. Our hotel was full. Mostly families coming to visit the students. One thing that threw us was that on Sunday almost ALL the restaurants were closed, including the one in our hotel. Where are people supposed to eat?!? I'll tell you. At the lone Chili's across from the campus. That was it!

Lubbock has about 250K people and is the 10th most populous city in the state. It's called the hub city because it's the educational, economic and healthcare center of the South Plains. The largest employer is Texas Tech University. The big grocery store chain there is United Supermarkets but they have a couple of Walmarts and and H-E-B. As for restaurants, most are local. There was a Chili's, a Longhorn Steakhouse and McAlister's Deli. Lots of fast food.

While Lubbock was definitely one of the bigger towns we visited on this journey, I don't think I could live there. But, it was a cool place to visit. If you're in the area, check it out!