Doin' Time

The Jail
 
The old jail stands crumbling,
                the windows with bars
                still intact, the rusted door open.
Someone has scratched his name
                in the old masonry; It is hard to read,
                the letters are now worn.
Perhaps he sat here, in this jail,
                in 1870, waiting for the short trip
                to the hanging tree;
Perhaps he waited here until
                his parents posted bail
                and he got his girlfriend back.
Perhaps he got 30 years
                for robbing the bank, the one
                with the columns but no roof.
Perhaps he just stayed one month
                because he got into a fight
                at the Trinity Saloon.
The old jail stands crumbling,   
                the windows with bars
                still intact, the rusted door open.
Someone has scratched his name
                in the masonry, leaving a sign,
Perhaps the only sign, that he was ever here

I took this picture on a lazy Saturday photo safari into rural Texas with my dad and my husband, Clint. We were out looking for adventure... and we found some..  We found the old R.A.D. sign post for a lost ranch (more about that later), and several old barns, old abandoned houses and some vintage automobiles.  The thing that touched me most, though, was finding the remnants of this old jail -- still with someone's name and the date 1870 (?) scratched into the side of the wall.  Many, many stories could be told about what happened in this jail if there were still folks around who would remember and would be willing to tell.  I love old buildings -- especially buildings over 100 years old.  It is a sad fact that many of the older buildings in Texas (and the U.S.) aren't valued for their history.  At least in rural Texas, we can still see many of them, although sometimes the folks that live around them would rather have them torn down.  In Houston, it seems like every old building I love gets torn down to make room for a new condo complex.  I have written many poems about fine old buildings that are now just memories.  But... back to jail!  It seems ironic that this old jail (which is a jewel, really -- an interesting landmark of Texas history) still stands in a county in which the major employer is the prison system. Those buildings are much fancier!! (and bigger!! )  The old Texas towns were rough.  Reading the history of some of these counties is like reading the script of an old John Wayne movie.  Tough places to live and to grow up.  The people here are proud of that.