Jim Ferguson Unit (FE) is a

Texas Department of Criminal Justice The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails, ...

prison for men located in unincorporated Madison County,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. The prison is located on

Farm to Market Road 247 A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...

, near Midway and northwest of

Huntsville Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

.Ferguson Unit
."

. Retrieved on September 29, 2011.

History

The unit was named after

James E. Ferguson James Edward Ferguson Jr. (August 31, 1871 – September 21, 1944), known as Pa Ferguson, was an American Democratic politician and the 26th Governor of Texas, in office from 1915 to 1917. He was indicted and impeached during his second term, ...

, a

governor of Texas The governor of Texas heads the state government of Texas. The governor is the leader of the executive and legislative branch of the state government and is the commander in chief of the Texas Military. The current governor is Greg Abbott, who ...

. In 1935, Ferguson housed White and African-American prisoners. The current Ferguson Unit opened in June 1962. Jack D. Kyle, the warden of Ferguson, supervised the construction of the current facility, which began in the fall of 1959. The facility was redesignated as a young-offenders unit, for men between the ages of 18 and 25. The first prisoners moved into the facility on March 2, 1962.Johnson, Bob. "Record Proves Kyle's Success Warden of Youth Prison." ''

Houston Post The ''Houston Post'' was a newspaper that had its headquarters in Houston, Texas, United States. In 1995, the newspaper shut down, and its assets were purchased by the ''Houston Chronicle''. History Gail Borden Johnson founded the ''Houston Po ...

''. Sunday May 2, 1965. Section 2, Page 12. Available via microfilm from the

Houston Public Library Houston Public Library is the public library system serving Houston, Texas, United States. History Houston Lyceum and the Carnegie Library The Houston Public Library system traces its founding to the creation of the second Houston Lyceum in 18 ...

Central Library Jesse H. Jones Building. In May 1965, the prison had 1,047 prisoners, with a capacity of 1,136 prisoners. As of May 1965, the then 34-year-old Kyle was the youngest warden in the

Texas Prison System The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is a department of the government of the U.S. state of Texas. The TDCJ is responsible for statewide criminal justice for adult offenders, including managing offenders in state prisons, state jails, ...

Demographics

In May 1965, while Ferguson was a young-offenders unit, the prison had 1,047 prisoners. About 45% were White, about 29% were Black, and about 26% were Hispanic and Latino. Almost all of the prisoners were between the ages of 17 and 21, with the exception of classroom instructors, shop instructors, and other key prisoner personnel. Prisoners came from all over the state, with various economic levels, urban and rural locations, and troubled and un-troubled upbringings represented. Bob Johnson of the ''

'' said that the prisoners were "just boys — older boys, perhaps, but still boys." According to Kyle, fewer than 2% of the young male Ferguson prisoners had

high school diplomas A school leaving qualification is an academic qualification awarded for the completion of high school. Depending on the country or region, it may alternatively be known as a high school diploma, senior secondary leaving certificate, high school ge ...

, almost 20% of the young male prisoners were illiterate, and 83% of them had received below a 9th grade education. At the time, the recidivism rate was 9.3%, compared to the state average of 27% and the national average of 50%.

Composition

The Ferguson unit, a red brick facility, is located in a woodland. In 1965, Bob Johnson of the ''Houston Post'' said that Ferguson, "at first glance, looks like it might be a small agricultural college" except that the presence of barbed wire demonstrates that the facility is a prison. Johnson said that Ferguson was "a neat new prison with lots of greenery .. In 1965,the prison, with a capacity of 1,136 prisoners, housed most of its inmates in individual cells. It had 935 individual cells, and two dormitories with 100 prisoners each.

Notable prisoners

* Craig Ahrens, accomplice of the

murder of Buddy Musso Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...

* Terence Singleton, accomplice of the murder of Buddy MussoSingleton Terence Jermaine

Archive
.

. Retrieved on December 28, 2015.

References

External links

Ferguson Unit
"

. {{TDCJ-CID prisons Buildings and structures in Madison County, Texas Prisons in Texas 1962 establishments in Texas