Sterling County Jail

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Out here in Sterling County, there's a building that's seen more than a few long nights, and it started with a deed, some local stone, and a company that knew how to work with steel. The Sterling County Jail.

Two stories. Built in 1912, twenty-one years after Sterling County itself was organized. That's the kind of place that comes into the world already carrying some history behind it.

The Southern Structural Steel Co. put it up, and the land it sits on was deeded to the county by Mr. and Mrs. R. C.

Stewart. That stone on the exterior, the stuff that gives it that solid, no-nonsense look, was quarried right there locally. Sterling County providing for Sterling County.

Now inside, the building had a personality all its own. Downstairs, a living area for the sheriff. Because somebody had to keep the lights on, and that somebody lived right there in the building.

Upstairs, seven cells. Seven. Not six, not eight.

Seven. You can imagine the quiet of that upper floor on a still West Texas night, or maybe you'd rather not. The building stood as it was for decades, until the 1960s, when an addition to the rear was completed, giving the old jail a little more room to work with.

Some buildings just keep going. This one certainly did.

What the marker says

This two-story jail building was constructed in 1912, twenty-one years after the organization of Sterling County. Built by the Southern Structural Steel Co., it is located on property deeded to the county by Mr. and Mrs. R. C. Stewart. Stone for the exterior was quarried locally. The interior includes a downstairs living area for the sheriff and seven cells on the upper floor. An addition to the rear was completed in the 1960s. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1980