Grapeland Calaboose - Grapeland, TX
N 31° 29.434 W 095° 28.811
15R E 264413 N 3486635
A longtime fixture along Grapeland's Main Street, this little wood calaboose has been restored and sits a few blocks away in a small park at West Oak and Chestnut Streets. It's actually in its third location now.
Waymark Code: WM14DQ6
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/18/2021
Views: 0
There is a small granite plaque in front of the calaboose that provides an overview:
Grapeland Old City Jail
(Calaboose or Hoosegow)
Built by private subscription during the incorporation of Grapeland in 1906. Originally located on the east side of town across and down the road from the Old Christian Church.
Moved to railroad property and re-roofed during Grapeland's Centennial in 1972. Moved to its present location and rebuilt in 2016 with funds provided by Grapeland Economic Development Corporation.
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The Tiny Texas Jails website (see below) is a great resource, and while this calaboose's page could use an update to note its relocation -- a 2013 street view on Google Maps still shows it in poor condition on Main Street -- it does elaborate considerably. This is a two cell calaboose, the interior not open to the public, with two barred windows on each side of each cell, with an entrance at both ends. A "Jail" sign is above the front entrance. Tiny Texas Jails elaborates a bit about the original location, and how the local kids would talk to the prisoners and sometimes be directed to pick up cigarettes for them.
By the 1930s, the calaboose had been retired and became a chicken coop. Unfortunately, there are no Sanborn maps to shed any additional light. Interestingly, the website is a bit at odds with the plaque, noting that the City of Grapeland acquired the calaboose during the Texas Sesquicentennial (1986) and moved it here, unless they mean that 1986 is simply when the city made the acquisition.
Original Location: N 31° 29.474 W 095° 28.760
How it was moved: Wheels / Dolly / Truck
Type of move: City to City
Building Status: Public
Related Website: [Web Link]
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