09/19/2025
Our local newspaper reached out requesting information about Burton's for an upcoming article featuring some of the longest running family businesses in Muleshoe. While compiling the information, I realized many people may not know a lot about our history, so I wanted to share a little information about the business that built me.
-Morgan
𝟑 𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬
Alton Burton started Alton Burton Service Center in June of 1979 at 516 W. American Blvd. with only his skilled 18-year-old son Terry, some tools, 43 years of experience fixing things & doing life, a very confident banker, and a dream under his belt. It turns out his banker was right to believe in his crazy dream, because the business soon flourished, taking in everything including regular vehicle maintenance work, complete engine overhauls, irrigation engine service calls/overhauls, and more. Outgrowing their workspace very quickly, they relocated to its current property at 803 W. American Blvd. in March of 1989. When they purchased the property, their dear friends David & LeAnn Gallman, helped them scrub the walls from ceiling to floor to prepare the shop for their opening day.
Part of the success of this family business is credited to Alton's wife, Alma, who was the shop's bookkeeper. She was meticulous, teaching her daughter, Tanya, & granddaughters, Ashley & Morgan, how to do the same job over the next 3 decades. She wouldn't allow the bank statement to be off a penny, even when Alton would reach in his pocket to offer her a number of coins to "make it even." Alma passed away in 2016, but she is still very present in the way the books are kept & the shop is cleaned.
Alton decided to step down in March of 2002, handing they keys to his son Terry, who altered the business name slightly when incorporating it, renaming it Burton Service Center. Alton was going to take it easy after working with his hands since he was just a boy & teaching his son & grandsons, Jason, Tucker, & Lance, the trade. While he would tell people he was retired, Alton continued to open the shop early each day, greet customers, turn wrenches, & stay until closing time every Monday through Friday, like clockwork. 46 years after opening the business & 23 years after "retiring", Alton is still a very present figure at the shop. Longtime customers often call him, "The Walmart Greeter," because he is usually the first person to greet you when you walk in the door and the last smile you'll see when you're walking out.
Terry has made some changes over the years, mostly modernizing tools and updating technology, but the work ethic, honesty, & workplace culture remains the same. Many customers who have been around since before Terry took over will tell you that they wouldn't have known the business officially changed hands because everything was exactly as it always had been. When something works, why change it?
Morgan joined the business in May of 2013 as the bookkeeper. She no longer uses the giant pale green accounting sheets or the golden yellow charge account ledgers, trading those in for computerized options. She does still balance the checkbook by hand to the cent, refusing to accept her Papaw's coins when it's off a few pennies & handwrites each check, ensuring bills are paid promptly. Her Nanny, Alma, taught her well & she continues to aim to do her proud.
Alton, Terry, & Morgan are looking forward to celebrating Burton's 50th anniversary with all of our customers in just a few years -- the summer of '29. It has been a fun ride so far, with customers becoming like family and 3 generations of the Burton family working side-by-side. Alma & Alton's children & grandchildren have done various jobs in the shop throughout the years, but they have also learned a lot about life, hard work, & good values. A 4th generation is now spending time under the shop roof as well, filling it with more great memories & riding the same cast-iron John Deere toy tractors Alton rebuilt that their parents once rode on the same stained concrete. Building this place from the ground up hasn't always been easy & it definitely hasn't always been perfect. It has, however, always been rewarding, successful, & full of love.
Thank you for joining us for the ride. It's our pleasure to continue serving the Muleshoe community.
