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Texas Prison Museum, Huntsville

4.7
#1 of 10 in Things to do in Huntsville
Specialty Museum · Museum
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The Texas Prison Museum is located in Huntsville, Texas.
The non-profit museum features the history of the prison system in Texas (Huntsville is the home of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and several prisons including the Ellis Unit which previously housed death row, and Huntsville Unit which houses the execution chamber). There are many different artifacts in the museum, including an electric chair named "Old Sparky" that was formerly used from 1924 to 1964 as the primary means of execution.
The museum was founded in 1989 and originally located in downtown Huntsville. It moved to its current location northwest of town (on Texas State Highway 75 at Interstate 45 Exit 118) in 2002.
It couldn't be easier to arrange your visit to Texas Prison Museum and many more Huntsville attractions: make an itinerary online using Inspirock's Huntsville trip maker website.
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Texas Prison Museum reviews

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TripAdvisor traveler rating 4.5
277 reviews
Google
4.7
TripAdvisor
  • This was a great tour. Friendly staff. A lot of history here, even Bonnie and Clyde. There is a bit of reading but not overwhelming. Very worthwhile for the money. We spent 2-3 hrs. here. 
    This was a great tour. Friendly staff. A lot of history here, even Bonnie and Clyde. There is a bit of reading but not overwhelming. Very worthwhile for the money. We spent 2-3 hrs. here.  more »
  • Wow! There were so many things about the Texas prison system that I did not know! This museum peels back the curtain on the prison system in Texas. The exhibits walk visitors through all aspects of... 
    Wow! There were so many things about the Texas prison system that I did not know! This museum peels back the curtain on the prison system in Texas. The exhibits walk visitors through all aspects of...  more »
Google
  • After a couple of years of trying to get here, I finally made it and was not disappointed. It was so much more than I expected. I never expected to see such beautiful art that prisoners make. You can also buy their handiwork (as I’m now the owner of beautiful leather coasters now). Nor did I expect to learn so much (and be ashamed of how little I knew). To be honest, I never expected to see more than half of the items in there. I’m so glad someone had the foresight to keep items and document this history. There’s so much to see and read. And, surprisingly, there’s a lot of room to grow into and for even more prison history memorabilia. For people traveling—there is plenty of space for RVs. For field trips—there’s also bus parking. Pro tip—don’t ignore all the items outside.
  • This place is dope. To learn about the history of the prison system, all the changes and advances was definitely something I needed. They have about a four minute video that you can watch before taking your tour that just tells you about the prison system and how it got started. While in there, You get to read the stories of what both inmates and staff went through. They charge for the tour but it’s definitely worth it and they have tons of memorabilia made by inmates there to purchase. If you’re driving through, definitely stop by. The staff there are so friendly and helpful. I didn’t take more pictures because there was just wayyyyyy too much stuff to photograph. It literally would’ve been 100 plus pictures.

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