Beauford H. Jester Complex

The Beauford H. Jester Complex,[2] formerly the Jester State Prison Farm, refers to a complex of Texas Department of Criminal Justice prisons for men in unincorporated Fort Bend County, Texas.[3] Individually they are Jester I Unit, Carol Vance Unit (Jester II Unit), Jester III Unit, and Wayne Scott Unit (Jester IV Unit).

Harlem
Unincorporated community
Beauford H. Jester Complex
Harlem is located in Texas
Harlem
Harlem
Location within the state of Texas
Coordinates: 29°35′57″N 95°42′46″W
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyFort Bend
Elevation
79 ft (24 m)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP codes
77406
Area code(s)713, 281, and 832
GNIS feature ID1378416[1]

Texas State Highway 99 (Grand Parkway) bisects the prison property.[4] Cornfields surround the Jester property.[5]

A portion of the property is within the Pecan Grove CDP.[6][7]

History

Previously the complex was known as Harlem, the Harlem Prison Farm, or the Harlem Plantation. The state of Texas purchased the prison farm property in 1885 or 1886. Previously several private plantations based here used convict leasing for labor.[8] This system has been called "slavery by another name", as lessees operated with little oversight by the state as to their treatment of convicts.[9] The plantations included the Harlem Plantation and several adjacent tracts of land.[10] The state essentially assigned room and board to employers who leased convicts; it had few prisons until late in the 19th century.

In 1885 the state opened Harlem I Unit and Harlem II Unit.[11][12] From July 20, 1888 to August 31, 1907 a post office was located on the prison farm. After the post office closed, the post office in Richmond, Texas handled mail for the prison farm.[13]

In 1908 the State of Texas bought the Riddick Plantation, which was next to the Harlem property. The state incorporated that property into the Harlem Farm.[10]

In September 1913 several prison guards in one of the units punished twelve African-American prisoners by placing them in a 9 feet 3 inches (2.82 m) long, 7 feet 3.5 inches (2.223 m) wide, and 6 feet 11.5 inches (2.121 m) high enclosure called "The Hole." The temperature in the enclosure went over 100 °F (38 °C), and convicts asked the guards to let them out. The guards did not let them out, and 8 of the 12 convicts died of suffocation and heat.[8]

In 1925 the prison farm had 5,005 acres (2,025 ha) of land. During that year it had 260 prisoners. The complex was renamed in the 1950s after Governor of Texas Beauford H. Jester.[8]

A spur track of the Galveston, Harrisburg and San Antonio Railway opened at the prison farm to load and unload sugarcane that was produced at the farm. The railroad line closed in 1929.[8]

The state expanded the facilities, opening Jester III Unit in July 1982.[14] Jester IV Unit opened in November 1993.[15]

Jester IV Unit was renamed to Wayne Scott Unit in 2021.[16]

Representation in other media

Steven Spielberg's first theatrical release, The Sugarland Express (1974), was set in and partially filmed at the prison complex.

References
  1. "Harlem, Texas". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. "PREA Audit Report" (PDF). Texas Department of Criminal Justice. 2017-06-25. Retrieved 2020-09-28.
  3. "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Fort Bend County, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 15, 23 (PDF p. 16, 24/63). Retrieved 2022-08-12. Jester Correctional Complx
  4. Ward, Mike. "As prison closes, could others be next?" Austin American-Statesman. Thursday August 11, 2011. Updated on Friday August 12, 2011. Retrieved on September 23, 2011.
  5. Bookman, Marc. "How Crazy Is Too Crazy to Be Executed?" Mother Jones. Tuesday February 12, 2013. 3. Retrieved on March 23, 2013.
  6. "2020 CENSUS - CENSUS BLOCK MAP: Pecan Grove CDP, TX" (PDF). U.S. Census Bureau. p. 1 (PDF p. 2/3). Retrieved 2022-08-12. Jester Correctional Complx
  7. "Page-541." Texas Department of Transportation. Retrieved on October 5, 2011.
  8. "Jester State Prison Farm." Handbook of Texas. Retrieved on October 6, 2010.
  9. Douglas A. Blackmon, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II, New York: Doubleday, 2008
  10. "Convict Leasing and State Account Farming (1883-1909)." Texas State Library and Archives. Retrieved on April 29, 2011.
  11. "Jester I Unit." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 9, 2010.
  12. "Vance Unit." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on May 9, 2010.
  13. "POSTMASTERS & POST OFFICES OF FORT BEND COUNTY, TEXAS 1846 - 1930." Jim Wheat's POSTMASTERS & POST OFFICES OF TEXAS, 1846 - 1930. Retrieved on October 12, 2011.
  14. "Jester III Unit." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on October 5, 2011.
  15. "Jester IV Unit." Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Retrieved on October 5, 2011.
  16. "TDCJ to Rename Three Prison Units". Criminal Justice Connections. Texas Department of Criminal Justice. June 2021. Retrieved 2023-02-19.
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