National Register Listing

Anderson County Jail

704 Avenue A., Palestine, TX

Anderson County Jail is a historic building in Palestine, Texas. It was built in 1931.

When the Anderson County Jail was constructed in 1931 it was considered the height of modernity and sophistication. The Art Deco design of the jail reflects the utilitarian nature of the building, while the county's construction of such an edifice indicates continued growth and economic prosperity following the inauguration of rail service to the city. Evaluated within the context of Community and Regional Development of Palestine: 1846-1945, the historic Anderson County Jail is nominated to the National Register at the local level of significance under Criterion C in the area of Architecture as a rare example of the Art Deco style in Palestine.

Along with the county courthouse, the county jail is a prominent symbol of local government and law enforcement within Anderson County. Located diagonally from the courthouse square, the Anderson County Jail occupies a highly visible comer in the original town site of Palestine. The building replaced an 1879-1880 brick building which had ably met the needs of the county for a half century. By early 1931 the jail was considered unsafe and Anderson County Commissioners deemed it necessary to replace the old structure with a new one. Palestine's increasing growth and development since the boom years of the 1870s and 1880s led to a resolution passed by the Court in April 1931, which stated:

Whereas the Commissioners' Court of Anderson County, after due consideration and investigation has ascertained and determined that the constriction and equipment of a new county jail for said county is necessary; that the present jail is unsafe and persons are escaping therefrom; that several grand juries of Anderson County in the past who have investigated the matter and who have made person investigation of the jail building recommended to this court the building of a new jail; that the present jail was built more than fifty years ago and is wholly inadequate and cannot be remodeled... It is therefore ordered ... that a new and modem jail be built at a cost not to exceed sixty thousand ($60,000.00) dollars (Minutes of the Anderson Commissioner's Court [MACC], Vol. 21, page 384).

At the same meeting, the Commissioners selected local architect Theo S. Maffitt to design the facility and instructed that bids be advertised for contractors. On June 25, 1931, the Court awarded the contract to Campbell and White (general contractors) of Tyler, Texas. The Southern Prison Company of San Antonio was hired to provide all of the jail cells and equipment (MACC Vol 21, page 410). Theo S. Maffitt was the son of Cicero S. Maffitt, a prominent local builder and contractor during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The younger Maffitt obviously shared his father's interests in constriction and attended the University of Texas where he received a degree in architecture in 1916. Soon after graduation, he leased office space in Palestine from his father and co-founded a short-lived architectural firm widi Hunter Price. In 1917 Theo S. Maffitt enlisted in die Navy and served as a draftsman. After his stint in the Navy, he returned to Palestine and resumed his architectural practice. His clients included many of Palestine's most influential individuals, businesses, and institutions and he designed numerous public and private buildings in the city over his long career. In addition to the 1931 Anderson County Jail, Maffitt also drew plans for the Rusk Elementary School (1931) on W. Palestine, die gymnasium annex (1937) to die Lincoln High School (1923) at 920 W. Swantz, and die Palestine Municipal Building (1939) on Oak Street. Maffitt's design for the new jail encompassed the stylized, geometric forms characteristic of Art Deco architecture. The style originated in France and gained popularity among American architects and designers during the late 1920s and 1930s. Hallmarks of the style evident on the jail include the minimal stepped parapet that tops the building, the zigzag and chevron detailing of the door surrounds, and the stylized geometry of the facade's stepped pilasters. Art Deco domestic architecture is relatively uncommon in the United States, in part because the style reached its height during the Depression. However, many public buildings of that era, including the Anderson County Jail, exhibit Art Deco details because local, state, and federal governments had the economic resources necessary for new constriction in the 1930s. Thus, the Anderson County Jail gains much of its significance from the rarity of the Art Deco style in Palestine as well as the remarkable retention of its architectural and historic integrity. The building served the county as the primary jail until the mid 1980s. In 1986 under pressure to upgrade the facility to meet new standards. County Commissioners decided to erect a new jail at another location, rather than renovate the old one. Arguments for building a new jail were remarkably similar to those voiced a half century earlier. Following completion of the new jail a few blocks east, the old jail was left essentially unused; however, in November 1991, the County Commissioners hired Ted Maffitt, son of Theo S. Maffitt, to undertake a feasibility study to convert the building into a juvenile detention center. His report was favorable, and in February 1992, the Scheppler Constriction Company contracted to complete the work.

Local significance of the building:
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1998.