Harlem

Jester State Prison Farm, formerly Harlem Prison Farm, Harlem, or Harlem Plantation, is a farm in Fort Bend County that is owned by the state of Texas and worked by convict labor. The state purchased the property in 1885 or 1886; Harlem was the second prison farm owned and run by the state. Before that time several privately held plantations that used convict labor leased from prisons had been highly successful (see PRISON SYSTEM). R. J. Ransom was placed in charge of the facility and oversaw its operation until his death in December 1895. In a report of 1890 the Penitentiary Board stated that the system was out of debt and that Harlem Plantation was valued at $200,000. The project was so successful that more prison farms were subsequently established.

Adapted from the official Handbook of Texas, a state encyclopedia developed by the Texas State Historical Association (TSHA). It is an authoritative source of trusted historical records.