Dix Key Shop was founded in 1937 by Dick C. Cunningham. Times were hard for most people following The Great Depression. Dick learned the locksmith trade by necessity to provide for his family. In those days he had to travel far from San Angelo to earn a living. Dick's son, Glenn, also traveled on these routes, learning as he worked alongside his father. The days were long and the roads were hard. They slept in the back of their 1928 makeshift Chevrolet car they converted into a mobile workshop.
The first Dix Key Shop was located on Concho and Oakes in downtown San Angelo, TX in 1945. Back then they made keys, worked on safes and anything in between from lawnmower repair to knife sharpening. As the years went by the business grew. Dick hired family members to help with the workload. Glenn had to stamp the keys with the letters DICK'S to advertise. He soon shortened the name to 'DIX' in order to save time stamping all those keys. The new spelling stuck and has been used ever since.
The business was relocated in 1959 to the present location on historic Chadbourne Street. Dix key Shop Safe and Lock Co. has come a long way. Now employing the fourth generation of family and friends, we specialize in security lock hardware and electronic access control. Our keys have been made through out the decades following Dick's example of providing quality work and a strong handshake to every customer.
Locks, safes and security systems have changed drastically since 1937 but our devotion to our family of clients, now 4 generations on in the Concho Valley & Texas remains unchanged. |
