TABLE OF CONTENTS
Overview
Agency History
Scope and Contents of the Records
Organization of the Records
Restrictions
Index Terms
Related Material
Administrative Information
Description of Series
Monthly reports,
1914-1915, 1931-1932 (bulk 1931-1932),
Financial records,
1913-1929, 1931, 1943 (bulk 1926-1928),
Miscellanous records,
1921, 1925-1933,
undated,
|
Texas Prison Board:
An Inventory of Records of the Texas Prison System at the
Texas State Archives,
1913-1933, 1943, undated
|
|
|
|
|
Creator: |
Texas Prison
Board. |
|
Title: |
Records of the Texas
Prison System |
|
Dates: |
1913-1933, 1943, undated |
|
Abstract: |
These records are
monthly reports on the condition of the state prison system and the status of
convicts in the prisons, financial materials, an inspection report on the
prison system, proposed prison legislation, a prison committee report, an
escape analysis, lists of employees in the prison system, various statistical
compilations on the prison system, affidavits, and a clipping. Dates covered
are 1913-1933, 1943, undated. |
|
Quantity: |
1.76 cubic
ft. |
|
Language |
English. |
|
Sponsor: |
This EAD finding aid was created in part with funds provided
by the Texas Telecommunications Infrastructure Fund Board for the Texas
Archival Resources Online project. |
"An Act to Establish a State Penitentiary" was passed in 1848 by the
Second Legislature. The act established a governing body of the penitentiary as
a three-member Board of Directors, appointed by the Governor, with the approval
of the Senate. The Board was responsible for creating and distributing a set of
rules and bylaws for the administration of the penitentiary, overseeing the
treatment of convicts, preparing an annual inventory of property, and making an
annual report to the Governor. Over the years, the name and composition of the
Board changed. While its basic functions were not greatly altered, some duties
were added. These included acquiring land for the Huntsville and Rusk
facilities, purchasing machinery, effecting repairs, leasing the
penitentiaries, leasing convicts for outside labor, purchasing and/or leasing
farms for the employment of convicts, and providing for the transfer of
convicts from county jails to the penitentiary. During the 19th century the
direct management of the prison was through the inspector, later known as the
superintendent. Other officers included assistant superintendents, inspectors
of outside camps, the financial agent, and physicians. The superintendent and
financial agent had the most direct dealings with the Board and the Governor in
the management of the prison system.
The prison system began as a single institution, located in
Huntsville, known as the Huntsville Penitentiary. Convicts were put to work in
various shops and factories housed within the institution. In 1871, the
legislature directed that the penitentiary be leased to private individuals
(Chapter 21, 12th Legislature, 1st Called Session). These men, known as
lessees, paid the state for the convict labor and use of facilities, and in
turn, managed the system, including clothing and feeding the convicts and
paying the guards. It was during this period that the outside camp system was
firmly established as part of the prison system. In addition to the use of
convicts in and around the prison, the convicts were hired out to large labor
employers, mainly plantation owners and railroad companies. A second prison
facility, Rusk Penitentiary, was built between 1877 and 1882. It began
receiving convicts in January of 1883.
In 1881, the Legislature reorganized the prison system, abolishing the
Board of Directors, and creating in its place a Penitentiary Board, consisting
of the governor, the state treasurer, and the prison superintendent (Chapter
49, 17th Legislature, Regular Session). In April 1883, the administrative
system was again reorganized, with the board comprised of the governor and two
commissioners appointed by the governor (Chapter 114, 18th Legislature, Regular
Session). In 1885, the board composition changed once more, now consisting of
three commissioners appointed by the governor (House Bill 562, 19th
Legislature, Regular Session). This board was succeeded by the Board of Prison
Commissioners in 1910, which was composed of three commissioners appointed by
the governor (Senate Bill 10, 31st Legislature, 4th Called Session). The
legislation that created the new board also directed the prison system to begin
operating again on state account, i.e., lessees no longer managed the prison
system, effective in January 1911. Convicts, or inmates, were housed and worked
in one of the two prisons or on one of several state prison farms. The shop
industries slowed down while the prison farms expanded. This arrangement made
it more difficult to provide education and other reform measures. Such measures
were generally practiced at Huntsville, with some teaching extended to a couple
of prison farms by the early 1900s.
The Texas Prison Board replaced the Board of Prison Commissioners as
the governing body for the Texas Prison System in 1927, increasing in size to
nine members (House Bill 59, 40th Legislature, Regular Session). The members of
the board were appointed by the governor, with senate approval, to six year
overlapping terms. The Board formulated the policies and the manager carried
them out. During the Board's tenure, 1927-1957, the Board made changes in the
system including more emphasis on prison reform, teaching,
recreation--including the establishment of the Texas Prison Rodeo--and a new
method of classifying inmates. The Texas Prison System became the Department of
Corrections in 1957 (Senate Bill 42, 55th Legislature, Regular Session). This
Department was governed by the Board of Corrections, composed of nine members
appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the senate to six year
overlapping terms.
Return to the Table of Contents
These records of the Texas Prison Board include reports; accounts,
operating expenses, receipts and disbursements, inventories, and other
financial records; proposed prison legislation; an escape analysis; statistical
compilations; affidavits; a clipping; and lists of prison employees. Dates
covered are 1913-1933, 1943, undated. Specific types of reports present are
monthly reports on the condition of the state prison system and the status of
convicts in the prisons, an inspection report on the prison system, a report on
building repairs and replacements, and a report by the Texas Committee on
Prisons and Prison Labor.
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
Organization of the Records |
|
These records are organized into three series: |
|
|
|
|
Monthly reports, 1914-1915, 1931-1932 (bulk 1931-1932), 1.29
cubic ft. |
|
|
Financial records, 1913-1929, 1931, 1943 (bulk 1926-1928), 0.37
cubic ft. |
|
|
Miscellanous records, 1921, 1925-1933, undated, 0.1 cubic
ft. |
Return to the Table of Contents
Restrictions on Access
None.
Restrictions on Use
None.
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
|
|
The terms listed here were used to catalog the
records. The terms can be used to find similar or related records. |
|
Corporate Names: |
|
|
Texas. Board of Prison
Commissioners. |
|
|
Texas. Committee on
Prisons and Prison Labor. |
|
Subjects: |
|
|
Prisons--Texas. |
|
|
Escapes--Texas. |
|
|
Prisoners--Texas. |
|
|
Prisoners--Statistics. |
|
|
Prison administration--Texas. |
|
|
Prison
industries--Texas. |
|
|
Prisoners--Legal status,
laws, etc.--Texas |
|
|
Prisons--Texas--Maintenance
and repairs. |
|
|
Prisons--Texas--Officials
and employees. |
|
Document Types: |
|
|
Reports--Prisons--Texas--1914-1915,
1928-1933. |
|
|
Statistics--Prisons--Texas--1928. |
|
|
Financial
records--Prisons--Texas--1913-1929, 1931, 1943. |
|
Functions: |
|
|
Managing prisons. |
|
|
Documenting Texas
prisons. |
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
|
The following materials are offered as
possible sources of further information on the agencies and subjects covered by
the records. The listing is not exhaustive. |
|
Texas State
Archives |
|
|
Records Relating to the Penitentiary, 1846-1921, 76.4 linear
ft. |
|
|
Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Records, 1849-2001,
165.95 cubic ft. |
|
|
Strays Collection, Comptroller's Office Strays (specifically
folders titled: Correspondence, Texas Prison System), 1931-1932, fractional
|
Return to the Table of Contents
(Identify the item and cite the series), Records of the Texas Prison
System, Texas Prison Board. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas
State Library and Archives Commission.
Accession numbers: 1998/257, 2002/027
There is no accession data for these records. The monthly reports
were removed from Governors' records during processing and were assigned an
accession number for control purposes on August 12, 1998. Other materials were
removed from the Strays Collection and assigned an accession number for control
purposes on October 1, 2001.
Laura K. Saegert, October 2001
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Monthly reports,
1914-1915, 1931-1932 (bulk 1931-1932),
1.29 cubic ft. |
|
These are monthly reports on the condition of the state prison
system and the status of convicts in the prisons, submitted to the governor by
the governing body of the Texas prison system, the Texas Board of Prison
Commissioners, later the Texas Prison Board, for the years 1914-1915 and
1931-1932, bulk dating 1931-1932. All the reports give the number of convicts
on hand and the number received from each county that month, and have separate
lists for the following: convicts escaped, recaptured, returned for parole
violations, delivered to sheriffs, discharged, paroled, pardoned, and died.
Other lists or tables in the report include the number of convicts at each
prison or prison camp; a hospital report, listing diagnoses at each
prison/prison camp; and a table of provisions provided at each prison/prison
camp. The reports for 1931-1932 also include lists of convicts returned for
violation of furlough, convicts furloughed, convicts whose citizenship was
restored; a report of the prison dental surgeon; and summary report on the
status of convicts (escaped, pardoned, recaptured, etc.) for the month covered
by the report, the previous month, and the same two months for the previous
year. |
|
Arrangement |
|
The reports are arranged chronologically. |
|
Preferred Citation |
|
(Identify the item), Monthly reports, Records of the Texas
Prison System, Texas Prison Board. Archives and Information Services Division,
Texas State Library and Archives Commission. |
|
Accession Information |
|
Accession number: 1998/257 |
|
There is no accession data for these records. The reports were
removed from Governors' records during processing and were assigned an
accession number for control purposes on August 12, 1998. |
|
Processed by |
|
Laura K. Saegert, October 2001 |
|
|
|
Texas State Penitentiaries monthly
reports |
| oversize |
| 1998/257-1 |
|
|
|
May 1914 |
|
|
|
|
September 1914 |
|
|
|
|
October 1915 |
|
|
|
|
November 1915 |
|
|
|
Texas Prison System monthly
reports |
| oversize |
| 1998/257-1 |
|
|
|
January 1931 |
|
|
|
|
February 1931 |
|
|
|
|
March 1931 |
|
|
|
|
April 1931 |
| oversize |
| 1998/257-2 |
|
|
|
May 1931 |
|
|
|
|
June 1931 |
|
|
|
|
July 1931 |
|
|
|
|
August 1931 |
|
|
|
|
September 1931 |
|
|
|
|
October 1931 |
|
|
|
|
November 1931 |
|
|
|
|
December 1931 |
|
|
|
|
January 1932 |
|
|
|
|
February 1932 |
| oversize |
| 1998/257-3 |
|
|
|
March 1932 |
|
|
|
|
April 1932 |
|
|
|
|
May 1932 |
|
|
|
|
June 1932 |
|
|
|
|
July 1932 |
|
|
|
|
August 1932 |
|
|
|
|
September 1932 |
|
|
|
|
October 1932 |
|
|
|
|
November 1932 |
|
|
|
|
December 1932 |
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Financial records,
1913-1929, 1931, 1943 (bulk 1926-1928),
0.37 cubic ft. |
|
Records in this series are various financial documents on the
condition of the Texas Prison System. Types of records present include lists of
receipts and disbursements, operating expenses, and accounts and expenditures;
inventories of goods and property; loss and gain statements; cashier's monthly
reports; and an audit of cash movement, dating 1913-1929, 1931, 1943, with the
bulk dating 1926-1928. |
|
Arrangement |
|
These records are arranged by type of record, then
chronologically. |
|
Preferred Citation |
|
(Identify the item), Financial records, Records of the Texas
Prison System, Texas Prison Board. Archives and Information Services Division,
Texas State Library and Archives Commission. |
|
Accession Information |
|
Accession number: 2002/027 |
|
There is no accession data for these records. These materials
were removed from the Strays Collection and were assigned an accession number
for control purposes on October 1, 2001. |
|
Processed by |
|
Laura K. Saegert, October 2001 |
| box |
| 2002/027 |
|
|
Receipts and disbursements,
June 1927 |
|
|
|
Receipts and disbursements,
July 1929 |
|
|
|
Audit for cash movement,
September 1931 |
|
|
|
Cashier's monthly report: |
|
|
|
|
September 1942 |
|
|
|
|
December 1942 |
|
|
|
|
January 1943 |
|
|
|
|
February 1943 |
|
|
|
|
March 1943 |
|
|
|
|
April 1943 |
|
|
|
|
May 1943 |
|
|
|
|
July 1943 |
|
|
|
Inventory,
1926-1927 |
|
|
|
Inventory and operating expenses,
1921-1926 |
|
|
|
Operating expenses,
1913-1914 |
|
|
|
Operating expenses and cash expenditures,
1927-1928 |
|
|
|
Prison system farms, loss and gain statement of
operations,
1915-1927 |
|
|
|
Accounts and expenditures,
1926 |
|
|
|
Accounts and expenditures,
1927 |
|
|
|
Prison system trial balance,
1926 |
Return to the Table of Contents
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Miscellanous records,
1921, 1925-1933,
undated,
0.1 cubic ft. |
|
Records in this series consist of an inspection report on the
state prison system, a report on conditions at the prison, a report on building
repairs and replacements, a report by the Texas Committee on Prisons and Prison
Labor, proposed prison legislation, an escape analysis, lists of employees in
the prison system, various statistical compilations on the prison system,
affidavits, and a clipping. Dates covered are 1921, 1925-1933, and undated.
|
|
Arrangement |
|
These records are arranged by type of record. |
|
Preferred Citation |
|
(Identify the item), Miscellaneous records, Records of the Texas
Prison System, Texas Prison Board. Archives and Information Services Division,
Texas State Library and Archives Commission. |
|
Accession Information |
|
Accession number: 2002/027 |
|
There is no accession data for these records. These materials
were removed from the Strays Collection and were assigned an accession number
for control purposes on October 1, 2001. |
|
Processed by |
|
Laura K. Saegert, October 2001 |
| box |
| 2002/027 |
|
|
Inspection report on the state prison system,
1933 |
|
|
|
Texas Prison Board meeting, report of general manager on
conditions of prison system,
1928 |
|
|
|
Report, building repairs and replacements,
1928 |
|
|
|
Texas Committee on Prisons and Prison Labor, report,
ca. 1931 |
|
|
|
Proposed legislation reorganizing the prison system,
ca. 1931 |
|
|
|
Escape analysis,
1928 |
|
|
|
List of employees in the prison system,
1921 |
|
|
|
Prison system statistics - principal employees,
distribution of convict forces, etc.,
1928 |
|
|
|
Prison system statistics,
ca. 1928 |
|
|
|
Ramsey Farm, acreage,
ca. 1927 |
|
|
|
Affidavits,
1925 |
|
|
|
Clipping on public policy on pentientiary system,
undated |
Return to the Table of Contents
|
