View Hale Facility History

Farquhar Is Not Current

The former Farquhar Cattle Ranch, also referred to in local history as the State Cattle Ranch, should not be used to confirm a current Hale County release. Research identifies it as a closed former Alabama Department of Corrections facility in the Greensboro area. It belongs on the facility list only to prevent a false lead: someone searching old names may think Hale County has an active state prison release source, but current ADOC facility checks must use ADOC's active facility list and current inmate search.

A present-day Hale County jail release starts with the sheriff's jail docket. A present-day state-prison custody question starts with ADOC. Post-release supervision starts with ABPP. Federal custody starts with USMS or BOP, and immigration custody starts with ODLS. Farquhar is local history, not a live roster, locator, or release desk.

That distinction protects the search path. If an old record, family memory, or local-history reference mentions Farquhar, use it as a clue about older Alabama corrections history, then move to the agency that would hold the current record. For a modern Hale County arrest, that agency is usually the sheriff or the court. For a modern prison sentence, it is ADOC and possibly ABPP after release.

Closed facility names can also appear in search results beside current jail pages, which is why the page needs a clear warning instead of a simple history note. The reader should not call a tourist or history source for a release date, and should not assume an inactive state facility has staff who can confirm custody. The current release record belongs to the agency that actually processed the custody event.

Hale Jail History

Hale County's facility history helps explain why old names surface in searches. Rural Southwest Alabama says the old Hale County Jail served until 1999, when it was replaced by the modern Hale County Corrections facility. It also notes old-jail capacity history. That old jail history is useful context, but it is not where current release records are created.

The old jail and the former Farquhar Cattle Ranch can both appear in local history searches, yet they point to different record problems. The old jail history explains why older jail references may not match the current sheriff contact. Farquhar history explains why a state-prison name connected to the Greensboro area should not be treated as an active ADOC facility. In both cases, the current release record must come from the agency that now holds the record.

The captured Rural Southwest Alabama old jail page documents the historic jail transition that supports this local-history distinction.

That source helps separate historic correctional sites from the modern Hale County release-record path.

Active ADOC Facilities

For a person sentenced to Alabama state prison today, use ADOC's active facility system and public inmate search. ADOC's public search is current-custody only, and historical release records are not posted online. A closed Hale County-area state facility should not be substituted for the active ADOC route.

ADOC's definitions also matter when a person is still in state custody. Minimum Release Date, Parole Consideration Date, and Parole Status are state-prison fields, not Farquhar history fields. If an older reference uses the State Cattle Ranch name, do not infer current facility location from that name. Confirm current custody through ADOC, and confirm the sentence or transfer through the Hale County court record when the case began locally.

1. Check whether the person was sentenced to ADOC through the Hale County court record.
2. Search ADOC by AIS number or name if state custody is likely.
3. Read facility, Minimum Release Date, Parole Consideration Date, and Parole Status fields.
4. Use ABPP for parole, probation, mandatory supervision, delinquency, or revocation.
5. If no ADOC result appears after a known state sentence, request records or verify with the court and ABPP.

History vs Release Records

Historic facility names can matter in older records, local memory, archival references, or news stories. They do not prove that a current person is held there. A modern release search should follow the agency that actually held the person at the time of release. For Hale County local custody, that is the sheriff. For state prison, that is ADOC and often ABPP after release.

A closed-facility page still has a job in a released-inmates site: it tells the reader what not to use. That is especially useful in a rural county where old jail and prison names can remain familiar long after operations changed. The correct current path is agency-based. Ask who held the person, who released the person, and which office created the record. Farquhar can answer none of those current questions.

If the question involves an older sentence, archived case, or historical custody period, start with the court file and then ask the relevant state records office what historical record may exist. Do not use the current ADOC public search as a complete historical archive, because ADOC says historical data is not online. The closed facility name can help phrase a records request, but it cannot confirm a current release.

Closed facility

A former custody site that no longer receives current releases.

Active facility

A jail, prison, or agency system currently responsible for custody records.

Historical reference

A source useful for old facility context, not live status.

Release source

The agency that created or controls the current custody-exit record.

Note: Use Farquhar history to avoid a wrong turn, then move to the current agency record.