Old Tuscaloosa County Jail, 2803 6th Street

old jail.jpg

Title

Old Tuscaloosa County Jail, 2803 6th Street

Subject

Jails

Description

This is the Old Tuscaloosa County Jail at 2803 6th Street in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, which is across the street from the Old State Capitol ruins in Capitol Park. In 1856, the jail was built by William B. Robertson at the cost of $8,029.40. It had the reputation as being the strongest jail in the Southeast; however, one man eventually escaped in 1884--Stephen S. Renfroe, famously known as the “Outlaw Sheriff of Sumter County.” Renfroe reportedly burned a hole through the second floor of the jail and escaped through a window on the first floor.

The building served as the county jail until 1890 when a new jail was constructed. It was later used as a boarding house, and then a VFW lodge for several decades. The Old Jail was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

The Tuscaloosa City School Board of Education (TCSBE) purchased the building in 1980. It housed their high school American Studies program from 1980 to 2003. The TCSBE later leased the building to a private school from 2003 to 2007. The Old Tuscaloosa County Jail is still owned by the TCSBE but has been vacant since 2007, and now serves as storage space.

The exterior of the building is in very good condition. Archaeological features (wells, privies, outbuilding features, etc.) are expected to exist on the property, which likely date back to the mid-late 1800s.

An historic marker on the corner of the property was errected by the Equal Justice Initiative in March 2017.  It describes the terror of lynching in Alabama from 1870-1940 and specifically chronicles eight lynchings that took place in Tuscaloosa County.

Source

Tuscaloosa News

Date

2014

Contributor

Betty Slowe (Description)

Type

Photograph

Identifier

1983

Coverage

Tuscaloosa County (AL)

Original Format

Photograph