Armstrong County Jail
Claude, Armstrong County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Erected in 1953, this building is constructed of stone used to build the first masonry jail in Armstrong County, 1894. Stone for the structure (which replaced a primitive, frame "calaboose") was quarried 14 miles south at Dripping Springs in Palo Duro Canyon and then hauled here in wagons driven by local citizens. The rock was cut at this site. The 1894 building had two stories, topped by a dome, and 20-inch walls. So sturdy was it that dangerous convicts from other counties were kept here. Old-timers remember that only three prisoners ever escaped. (1969)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Erected in 1953, this building reused the stone from Armstrong County's first masonry jail of 1894, which had replaced a crude frame "calaboose." The original rock was quarried 14 miles south at Dripping Springs in Palo Duro Canyon and hauled here by wagon, then cut on site. The two-story 1894 jail, topped by a dome and walled 20 inches thick, was so secure that other counties sent their dangerous convicts there—and old-timers recalled only three escapes.
Why it matters
The jail illustrates how frontier Panhandle counties established law and order, building formidable institutions from local stone as settlement took hold.
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Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Early Sheriffs of Armstrong County, 1890-1926
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