Along with the settlement of the Texas frontier came rustlers; public drunks; gunfighters; and other outlaws. A jail in which to incarcerate the lawbreakers was thus often the first public building raised in a new town.Later; as government developed; public buildingsmdash;notably county courthouses and jailsmdash;assumed not only practical but also symbolic importance. The architecture of these buildings in the nineteenth century reflected the power and status with which the community imbued the government; many of the same architects applied the aesthetic standards of the day to both. In later years; the safety and at least limited comfort of the prisoners became concerns and jails were remodeled or abandoned to other uses in favor of modern; more utilitarian structures.In this heavily illustrated guide to the historic county jails of Texas; Ed Blackburn Jr. takes readers to each of the 254 counties in the state; presenting brief histories and of the counties and their structures that housed their criminals. He provides general information about the architecture and location of the buildings and; when possible; describes the present uses of those that have been decommissioned.Interviews with local officials; historians; and newspaper publishers have yielded colorful anecdotes for many of the jails. Revealing photographs of many of the old jails have been gathered from local and archival sources; and Blackburn himself has taken pictures of extant buildings. Together; these words and images not only provide a survey of the way Texans have housed their criminals; but also; with the aid of thumbnail maps of county locations; offer residents and tourists throughout the state a guide to a fascinating aspect of architectural and cultural history.
#4574561 in eBooks 2010-10-13 2010-10-13File Name: B007ZZCP8I
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