City of Albany

Albany

Albany’s story begins with Shackelford County’s first town, The Flat, a rip-roaring community of cowboys, soldiers, and buffalo hunters that grew around Fort Griffin. Citizens petitioned to organize Shackelford County with Fort Griffin as the seat, but Sheriff Henry Jacobs thought an alternative site nearby, with a central location and land ideal for a railroad, would provide a better environment for governance than The Flat’s rough and rowdy atmosphere. Jacobs acquired the land, and Albany supplanted Fort Griffin as county seat. The oil boom years saw the coming of the Bankhead Highway to Albany. The northern branch of SH 1 extended through town, and motels, gas stations, and roadside parks emerged, responding to the newfound popularity of automobile travel. Albany’s historic courthouse remains an important government symbol, however the 1877 jail has been converted into the world-class Old Jail Art Center, a must see if you’re in town.