{"nrhp_refnum":"77001429","name":"Bowie County Jail","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Public Sq.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Boston","county":"Bowie County","state":"TX","lat":33.442347504000054,"lon":-94.42178152999998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1977-11-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, cubical county jail on the southeast corner of the public square in Boston, Bowie County, Texas, built in 1891-1892 by the contractors Sonnefield, Emmins and Albright. It was originally listed together with the county courthouse, which was later demolished.","why_significant":"The jail is argued to be significant locally under Criterion A for Politics/Government and Criterion C for Architecture. It is one of the last tangible links to Old Boston's role as the seat of government in Bowie County. The 19th-century building keeps its characteristic architectural details, and few alterations mar its integrity.","narrative":"Built in 1891-1892, the Bowie County Jail is a two-story, cubical brick-era lockup on the southeast corner of the public square in Boston, Texas. It was designed and built by the contractors Sonnefield, Emmins and Albright, who also built the adjoining courthouse. The ground floor held the sheriff's quarters and kitchen, while cellblocks occupied the second floor, with cells supplied by a St. Louis manufacturer. Simple details include corner buttresses, a water table, strong stringcourses, segmental arches and barred double-hung windows. The jail was first listed together with the courthouse as local landmarks of county government. After the county seat's functions moved to New Boston, the courthouse sat idle, burned in 1987 and was later demolished. An amendment removed it from the listing. The jail remains as one of the last physical links to Old Boston's role as seat of government, and it retains its original character despite the loss of its setting. Its significance rests on politics and government and on architecture at the local level.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Sonnefield, Emmins & Albright","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The courthouse was gutted by arson in 1987 and demolished, so the jail is the only building left on the square. The jail itself retains most of its historic integrity.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.705158-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/44/9713/40971344/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/77001429.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/77001429/09bcf517f7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/77001429/09bcf517f7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Valis55","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bowie_County_Jail.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Valis55</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bowie_County_Jail.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971344","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowie_County_Jail","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110000982"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/bowie-county/bowie-county-jail-77001429/"}