| Houston Historic Jail |
| Old Houston, located a few miles away from present day Houston, was the first county seat. Citizens voted to move the county seat to present day Houston in the late 1850's and a log jail was constructed at that time. The jail burned during the Civil War and was rebuilt in 1868. The Houston jail was built of hand-hewn logs filled with nails to prevent prisoners from "sawing their way to freedom". The jail held prisoners and provided a site for court. In 1884 the county seat was moved from Houston to present day Double Springs. |
| Photo Made Sept. 2006 by Tony Rucker |
| This site best viewed at 800 x 600 resolution or finer. Contents Copyright © 2006, 2007 Houston Historical Society, Houston, AL |
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Houston, AL served as the first county seat for Winston County. The area known
today as Winston County was originally established in 1850 as Hancock County,
named after John Hancock, signer of the Declaration of Independence. In 1858
the county was renamed Winston after the first native-born governor of
Alabama, John Anthony Winston.
today as Winston County was originally established in 1850 as Hancock County,
named after John Hancock, signer of the Declaration of Independence. In 1858
the county was renamed Winston after the first native-born governor of
Alabama, John Anthony Winston.