Est. 1849
Capacity: 1705
Custody Level: Minimum - Medium, Solitary Confinement
Prisoner Release Center, Execution Chamber

Soon after Texas became a state, the
legislature chose Huntsville as the site of the first permanent state penitentiary.
Located at this site, the original buildings
were brick and designed by Abner H. Cook. The master brick mason was Capt. James Gillaspie and the master carpenter was Col. William M. Barrett. The original exterior wall was 15' high.

Construction began in 1848, and the unit
received its first inmates October 2, 1849. The Huntsville unit is Texas' oldest unit and can currently house 1,700 inmates.

The main entrance to the prison was re-built
in 1942 and displays two clocks that were originally located in the gothic clock tower above the 1895 administration building.

The brick security wall surrounding the prison has given The Huntsville Unit its colorful nickname "The Walls."
The original wall was made of sand brick. The brick facade was completed in 1942 and made from bricks manufactured at the old Harlem Unit. The wall ranges in thickness from 2-3 ft. and soars to the height of 32 ft. in many sections. The majority of Texas Prison units are surrounded by tall chain link fences with miles of razor barded wire on top for security.

Prison industry began in 1854 with the construction of the textile mill; inmates manufactured the majority of their needs. The Huntsville Unit was the industrial center for many years and housed factories which produced wagons, mattresses, cloth, and shoes. The hides of cattle and cotton grown on state prison farms were often used for materials. In 1935, the license plate plant began operation here but has since been moved to the Wynne Unit.