Old Sparky - Texas

Texas

The Texas electric chair to which the name "Old Sparky" is applied was in use from 1924 to 1964. During that time, it saw the deaths of 361 prisoners sentenced to die by judicial electrocution. It was built by incarcerated craftsmen in 1924. Following its decommissioning, it was originally relegated to a prison dump before being rescued. Today, it is on public display as part of a replica death chamber at the Texas Prison Museum in Huntsville, Texas, along with tubing and straps used in Texas' first execution by lethal injection.

In 1971, the Greater Dallas Crime Commission, a business organization, circulated a petition to recommission Texas' "Old Sparky". The petition received 10,620 endorsements.

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