Langston Jail

The Langston Jail was referred to as a “village jail” when it was constructed in 1935. A cost of $500 was allocated for the project via a Federal Emergency Relief Administration grant. Soon a concrete floor and cobblestone structure were erected with all the modern facilities of electricity, gas, and water.

The reason this jail looks much better than most is because of a revitalization campaign in the early 2000s by Clarence Hedge, President of the Langston Community Development Corp. A questionnaire was done in the late ’90s amongst residents to see what they wanted for the town. One of the topics that was agreed upon was the restoration of some of the town’s historic sites, the jail being one of them.

Two years after the campaign started, $1,700+ had been raised for the jail project. From then on a brand-new concrete slab, replacement of sandstone blocks and fixing of hairline fractures in the roof were done to the jail. Today it stands as a testament of time, being one of few calabooses left in the state, let alone left in one of the All-Black surviving towns of Oklahoma.

Gallery Below of Langston Jail

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