By Dustin Durrett
In the historic Oakland Cemetery of Dallas rests Charley Sing, remembered as the city’s first Chinese butcher. His story reflects perseverance, partnership, and the shared spirit of a growing city. Charley Sing began his career in 1899, working at a Chinese restaurant in Oak Cliff as a cook.
Through hard work and determination, he soon advanced beyond restaurant work. By 1904, the Dallas City Directory listed him as a meat market proprietor.
Sing entered into partnership with Samuel Lansky, a Jewish grocer, his market was at 645 North Washington Avenue in the “Short North Dallas” area. Their collaboration reflected the cooperation and mutual respect often found among immigrant business owners striving to build better lives in early
Dallas.
When Charley Sing passed away in 1909, he was buried at Oakland Cemetery. Nearly a year later, Frank Beaumont, a former Texas Ranger, was laid to rest beside him—a fitting symbol of Dallas’s diverse and intertwined past.
Thanks to the efforts of the Dallas Asian American Historical Society, Charley Sing’s story has resurfaced. His life stands as a reminder that Dallas’s early success was built by people from many cultures, whose enterprise and resilience helped shape the city’s enduring character.
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