Description
This collection of records are contained in a single volume register of prisoners
received in and discharged from San Luis Obispo County Jail, July 1, 1912 -September 30,
1913. The register provides the date on which a prisoner was received, his name and
crime, the arresting officer's name, the name of the sentencing judge, and the date and
by what authority the prisoner is discharged. In some cases, the number of days spent in
jail and jail fines paid are also listed. There is an index to the sixty-two pages of
prisoners in the register.
Background
San Luis Obispo county was a "late-blooming" political sub-division. Despite the presence
of a Spanish mission on the site of the county seat, the city of San Luis Obispo was not
incorporated until 1876 and the railroad did not reach the city until 1894. By 1912 San
Luis had a population of 5,000 people.