Bedingfield Inn

Singer Family

John Singer was the first member of the Singer family to settle in Stewart County. He was born in Stuttgart, Germany and came to this county in 1833, where he operated a tailor shop. The building is still in existence. Two nephews, Johan George and John Singer, II, also from Stuttgart, joined him in Lumpkin.

John Singer, II, came to Lumpkin in 1836. In 1843, he returned to Germany and brought his widowed mother and two sisters back to Lumpkin with him.

Johan George came to America when he was twenty years old. He lived in Baltimore for two years, where he met Louisa Messner. They married in 1838 and came immediately to Lumpkin.

Johan George Singer was a shoemaker. His home and store, built in 1838, remain very much as they were when built. The first floor of the store, which as adjacent to his home, was used for making shoes and the second floor for employees, who slept there. Later, as the family grew, the older boys also slept upstairs.

Johan George and Louisa were active in the Methodist Church and reared a family of eleven children. Many of their descendants still live in Lumpkin.