By Staff
Story and photo by Lydia Grimes
Susan Crawford may be retired from her job as media specialist at W.S. Neal Middle School, but she has just moved on to doing something else.
Crawford was elected treasurer for the Escambia County Historical Society earlier this year. She wants to devote her time to something she loves but has always been too busy to do.
Crawford was born in Meridian, Miss., one of five children. Her father was a soil conservationist who worked for the government. The family lived in Marion, Ala., for a while, but when her father entered the military, the rest of the family moved to Pollard.
In Pollard they lived in the house known today as the Lindsey House. It is listed on the Alabama List of Historical Places and has been refurbished by Sally Finlay.
During this time, she started school somewhat younger than most.
When her father came home from the war, the family packed up and moved back to Marion.
The family soon moved to Suttle, Ala., where the fifth and last child was born. By the time Crawford was in high school, the family had moved back to Marion.
She graduated from Perry County High School in 1957 after having been involved in several school clubs and organizations. She said that she had &#8220pretty good” grades.
Crawford met her first husband at college and they married after her first year of school. She dropped out of school and worked while he finished college at Livingston. She also gave birth to her only child, Robin, during this time.
College was still waiting for Crawford, and when the family moved to Phenix City, she went to Auburn University and graduated in 1970 with double certification in library science and teaching. She taught at Ladonia Elementary School for a while, but after she and her husband were divorced, she returned to Brewton. But she stopped in Prattville along the way and interviewed for a job.
She and her husband, Charles Crawford, moved back to Brewton and she went to work at North Brewton School in 1981.
Crawford retired at the end of the year after working to bring the W.S. Neal Middle School library to what it is today.
Crawford also has hobbies such as handcrafts that she hopes to have time for.
She is also a collector of many things. After her father died, her mother signed up with the Department of Defense and spent many years overseas teaching school.
She brought many things back that are now Crawford collectibles, such as her collection of eggs.
They are made out of all sorts of materials, such as jade and turquoise. She also lives in a house that has been in the family for many years and has furnished it with antiques.
And don't ask her about the ghosts that seem to roam through her house. Even if you don't believe, it's interesting, if nothing else.