Lucius Lomax

Lomax was born in Texas, and served in the Spanish-American War and in the campaign against Pancho Villa.^[1] He later departed Texas (possibly because of a murder charge), went to Japan, and then landed in Washington in time for Prohibition.^[1] He became a bootlegger, and ran a brothel with his half-sister prior to moving to the L.A. area.^[2][1] In 1933 a columnist in the California Eagle described Lomax as a "big time financier of San Francisco and Oakland...In days of old when Lady Chance was in her hey-day in California, Lucius Lomax would lose or win a thousand dollars without batting an eyelash. Although he gives away thousands to charity he never allows his good deeds to be published. His modesty is a thing sublime".^[3] A 1937 grand jury minority report named Lomax alongside figures like Guy McAfee, Bob Gans, and Tutor Scherer as one of 27 suspected "vice chiefs" of the Greater Los Angeles area.^[4] His most productive era in California was from the late 1930s to early 1950s.^[2]

Lomax was a wealthy and influential figure who was described by his descendants as a handsome killer and thief, by neighbors as "the man to see" in the African-American community surrounding Central Avenue in Los Angeles, California, United States, and by historians as a "surprisingly important" figure in the history of early 20th-century black L.A.^[1] Lomax's son, typically referred to as Lucius Lomax Jr., ran the Dunbar Hotel, became an attorney and newspaper publisher, and ran unsuccessfully for the California Assembly and Los Angeles City Council.^[5] The newspaper, edited by Almena Lomax, was viewed by Almena as "the first step in [Lomax Sr.]'s rehabilitation from mobster to legitimate citizen".^[2] When he died by self-inflicted gunshot in 1961, Lomax's estate was estimated to be worth approximately half a million dollars, and Lomax was described by a news wire service as someone who built "an empire of wealth through his knowledge of human nature and material values, but still remained modest and unpretentious".^[6]

• Bogle, Donald (2005). "Old Man Lomax Comes to Town". Bright Boulevards, Bold Dreams: The Story of Black Hollywood. Ballantine Books. ISBN 978-0-307-51493-6. LCCN 2004054781. OCLC 430580035.