Petrolia

This brick structure is located at 114 Benton Street in the town of Petrolia, Texas (Clay County).   One brick with the makers mark “Globe” was observed near the back window.  The walls consist of a double row of bricks.  The original door is missing and the entrance is covered with a sheet of wood screwed to the frame.  There are two windows of equal size (60 cm x 118 cm).  One is on the back wall and the other is on the northeast side.  The opening for the door measures 83 cm x 200 cm.  The front is 4.3 m wide and the sides are 2.94 m long.  The distance from the ground to the top of the walls is 2.36 m.  The structure sits on a cement slab and the roof is wood covered with a cement slab.  There are several places where bricks are missing and there is a large crack in the northwest wall.  It is privately owned by Steve and Barbara La Roach of Jefferson City, Missouri. According to local informant Mike McDonald, this building served a secondary purpose after it was no longer used as a calaboose.  The town needed more office space; therefore, it was converted for use as an office for the city water department.  The bars were removed and the window openings were replaced with modern windows. William E. Moore visited this jail on July 1, 2013 as part of his Texas Jail Survey.   It was later recorded at the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory in Austin, Texas as historic site 41CY21.