The Office of Sheriff

Galveston County was formed by an act of the Congress of the Republic of Texas on May 15, 1838.  Under that act, William F. Wilson was appointed the County’s first Sheriff.  One of his first acts was to establish a county jail, which was placed in the Elbe, a vessel beached during a hurricane in 1837. 

In that era, just as now, the Sheriff had the responsibility for maintaining law and order in the county, operating the county jail, and, in certain cases, carrying out sentences – including death sentences – for persons found guilty of crimes.  In November, 1840, Sheriff Wilson was ordered by Judge Shelby, judge of the 1st Judicial District, to hang a man after he had been convicted of burglary and “prison-breaking.”  With regret, and with cries from the public not to carry out the sentence, Sheriff Wilson took the man to the gallows in what was reportedly the first hanging in the County’s history.  The last Sheriff that had to carry out such a sentence – according to available information – took place around 1896 under Sheriff William Owens.

In 1841, the newly-elected Sheriff, H. M. Smythe, took office.  Soon thereafter, Texas President David Burnet appointed a judge, Thomas Johnson, to serve in the 1st Judicial District but did not remove Judge Shelby from the bench.  Recognizing Judge Johnson as the true judge, Sheriff Smythe found himself trying to perform his duties alongside another Sheriff, William Herring.  There is no known record of any other county in Texas that had two sheriffs in office at the same time.  The matter was soon corrected, and Sheriff Smythe remained in office until 1844. 

A number of men served as Sheriff of the county, some appointed but many elected by the populous:

1838-1840           William F. Wilson

1841-1844           H. M. Smythe

1841                   William Herring

1845                   William F. Wilson

1846-1850           Pryor Bryan

1851-1852           William N. Sparks

1853-1854           John N. Reed

1855-1856           David N. Grove

1857-1860           J. H. Westerlage

1861-1863           C. L. McCarty

1864                   Alvin Reed

1865                   C. L. McCarty

1866-1871           Frank Dirks

1872                   Joe A. Owens

1873-1876           Joe Atkins

1877-1880           Chris Jordan

1881-1886           William P. Owens

1887-1895           Pat Tiernan

1896-1922           Henry Thomas

1923-1931           Robert E. Kirk

1931-1932           Claude J. Allen

1933-1956           Frank L. Biaggne

1957-1960           Paul Hopkins

1961-1980           J. B. Kline

1981-2000           Joe Max Taylor

2001-2008           M. E. “Gean” Leonard, Jr.

2009-Present       Freddie Poor

In January, 1957, Sheriff Hopkins took over the office with a staff of five deputies, one secretary, and a handful of jailers that operated a four-story pre-1900 jail facility, located at what is now the area of 17th Street and Harborside Drive in Galveston. 

Sheriff Freddie Poor, in January of 2009 began his tenure with 400 sworn- and non-sworn personnel operating a modern jail facility able to house 1,100 inmates.

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