FORT STOCKTON, Texas — Opening the doors of the Historic Old Jail in Fort Stockton and you'll be greeted with an innocent looking desk in a small greeting room.
But lining the walls and cabinets aren't just photos of old sheriffs and deputies who lived there... there's over one hundred years of history etched into the floors, walls and bars.
“Originally, it was built in 1883, but it was a lot smaller," said Veronica Diaz, a tour guide and curator of the Old Jail. "The building you see today was expanded and completion was in 1913, but it started in 1912.”
It's a two story building, with the first floor being where the sheriff and his family lived. And yes, even the wives were active members of the jail, answering phone calls and cooking the meals that the inmates would eat.
Speaking of the inmates, they were housed on the second floor. Usually, they would never leave the building, but every now and then they got to stretch their legs.
“When it comes to the inmates themselves, they were pretty much confined to their cells, with the exception of the times they were allowed outside for work," Diaz said. It was a short term facility and they worked of their time.”
The magic number for full capacity was 35. That's how many inmates could be put in the prison at a single time.
But it was still quite cramped, even if there was vacancy in the cells.
“We had five cells. the four on the left had two bunks each. and the one at the very end over here had four," Diaz said. "That is mainly by the amount allotted for cell space.”
But, for now, it sits retired and is yet another piece of history in a city filled to the brim with it.
“The home area was used from 1883 to the year 2000 and the cell area above us was used from 1883 to 1973, which is also the year we became a historical landmark,” Diaz said.
But, the global tourists who come to see the jail keep the memories alive, from the preserved drawings on the floor to the mannequins who sit in place where the inmates used to be.
“I’ve met people from Turkey, from Israel, from even across the pond as they say, even from Germany and Poland," Diaz said. "It is so amazing that I get to meet all these people from everywhere… I love it, I love it.”
Of course, if you want to learn even more about the jail, tours are available Wednesday through Friday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.