Beeville
Front of Calaboose
This wooden calaboose is in Beeville, Texas and is advertised as the county’s first jail. According to Kay Mix, local historian, it was originally located on the northwest corner of Courthouse Square. Robert Horn was the sheriff in 1989. He found that it was still standing and he had it moved to a vacant lot near the current jail. When the lot was sold, the calaboose was saved from demolition by County Commissioner Dennis DeWitt. Its last move was to its current location in the 1970s.
It is one of the more unusual specimens I have encountered. Darryl Pearson shares my love of calabooses and he has documented several that I have not been able to get to, including this one. These are his pictures. The most unusual feature of this one is the metal lock box on the wall that was used to lock and unlock the metal cells inside. There are no cells present today. The Pauly Company is well known for the manufacture of steel cells and cages. Other examples of their work posted on this website include the two cell cage in Montgomery, Texas and a very similar cage in Crawford, Texas. The construction is wooden board and batten and it rests on pier and beam.
Maker’s Plate
This building is 16 feet wide by 28 feet long (448 square feet). The construction of the floor is most unusual and the only example on this website. It was constructed by placing 2 x 4 inch boards in four layers in a crisscross pattern. The result was a floor approximately 8 inches thick. The door is 3 feet wide and 7 feet tall. There are five windows. On the side behind the county’s sign is a window that could be closed with a wooden door. It is 28 inches by 46 inches. The larger window is 28 inches by 64 inches and is covered with a metal door. Above the larger window is a small, narrow opening with tiny bars. There are two windows on the opposite side that do not have any coverings. Interestingly, there is a corresponding narrow window as well. The floor plan of this calaboose is not known. If there was only one metal cell inside the floor plan wound be 1d and it would be 2h if there were two cells inside (see Floor Plans). It has been recorded at TARL as historic site 41BE31.
According to a recent post on Facebook by Robert Burke Ray, his Grandfather was John E. Wilson, the Sheriff of Bee County from 1900 – 1910 and also served as tax collector. It is likely that he was the Sheriff when this calaboose was being used.
View of small and large windows
Metal Window Shutter
Window with shutter open
Skidmore
Front View
This small calaboose is located on the grounds of the Skidmore Historical Society Museum on State Highway 21 South at the intersection of this highway and Sullivan Street in Skidmore, Texas. It was built in 1898 and moved from its original location near the Justice of the Peace office to the museum as a permanent exhibit in the 1970s. The walls are vertical board and batten and the roof is wooden shingles. The jail measures 3.8 meters across the front and 3.6 meters on each side (147.2 square feet). There are three windows, one on each side and one in the back. The windows on the sides are centered on the wall and low to the ground. They are small and measure only 48 by 51 centimeters. The two side windows are covered with wooden doors that can be opened when light or ventilation is needed. If the door is original, these windows would have been the only places where air and light could pass through. The window on the back wall (also centered and low to the ground) is much larger at 60 by 87 centimeters. it contains bars made of flat metal (aka strap iron) that are riveted together in a checkerboard pattern. It is probable that a wooden door was at one time covered this window as well.
Side of Calaboose
Rear Window
There is a metal bed inside but its exact age is not known. There were no Sanborn maps at the agencies visited for Skidmore, Texas at the time of this study. This structure conforms to Floor Plan 1a (see Floor Plans). It has been recorded at TARL as historic site 41BE27. This calaboose was locked at the time of my visit. Therefore, my only view of the interior was through the single window that was open. Kay Mix was the Chairperson of the Bee County Historical Society and she provided much of the information presented above.
Window with Shutter Closed