What’s In a Name?
Eastham Unit Changing Names to J. Dale Wainwright Unit
Special to The Messenger
LOVELADY – Last week, the Texas Board of Criminal Justice voted to rename three prisons within its system. They are: the Eastham Unit, which will become the J. Dale Wainwright Unit; the Tulia Unit, which will become the Thomas R. Mechler Unit; and the Beauford H. Jester IV, Unit will now be known as the Wayne Scott Unit.
J. Dale Wainwright Unit
In 1850, the Goree family bought land in northwest Walker County. In 1891 they sold it to the Eastham family who then leased the property back to the state prison system. And in April 1917, the Eastham Unit was established.
Located just outside of Huntsville, the unit can hold up to approximately 2,400 male inmates. It is also the location of the agency’s garment factory, agricultural operations and multiple faith-based and educational programs.
We are now changing the name of the Eastham Unit to the J. Dale Wainwright Unit in recognition of the former Chairman of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice.
Justice Dale Wainwright was appointed as board chairman by Governor Greg Abbott in August 2015. He is a graduate of Howard University in Economics and a graduate of the University of Chicago Law School where he earned a Juris Doctor degree in 1988. He is a former Associate Justice of the Texas Supreme Court and a former Judge of the 334th District Court in Harris County.
He also served as Chair of the Correctional Institutions Committee while on the Board and was a member of Audit & Review, Business and Financial Operations and Health Care committees.
Justice Dale Wainwright’s leadership has led to many accomplishments within the agency including the following:
- A salary increase for Correctional Officers
- Facilitating the closure of units
- Increased rehabilitation and faith-based programming
- Overseeing the agency’s response to Hurricane Harvey
- Encouraging other board members to visit the staffs at units and parole offices
- During his tenure, the reentry program known as STRIVE (Strength Through Restoration, Independence, Vision and Empowerment) that prepares female inmates for successful reentry was initiated.
A former president of the Houston Young Lawyers Association, co-founder of the Aspiring Youth Program and the recipient of the 2000 Legal Excellence Award from the NAACP, his notable contributions and achievements extend past his tenure on the Texas Board of Criminal Justice and his current service on the Public Safety Commission.
In recognition of his loyal service, integrity, tenacity, and profound wisdom, it is resolved that the Eastham Unit will now be known as the J. Dale Wainwright Unit.
