The first Lubbock attorneys arrived about the time the county was organized, in 1891. Most were “prairie dog lawyers,” who traveled by horse or horse-drawn buggy throughout the South Plains and beyond seeking business. They rarely established permanent law offices in Lubbock, and most were gone by the turn of the century.
When more stable attorneys arrived in the early 20th century, they began to develop successful law practices and settled down with their families. One of these lawyers, W.H. Bledsoe, built a beautiful home near downtown Lubbock. Now, more than a century later, this remarkable structure still stands. Ironically—and appropriately—the Bledsoe home has been converted into law offices.
William Harrison Bledsoe was born in 1869 in Cleburne, Texas, where he attended public schools. He studied law at the University of Texas and was admitted to the State Bar of Texas in 1890. After a few years practicing law in Cleburne, in 1908 he moved to Lubbock, soon to become a boomtown with the arrival of the railroad the following year…