U.S. Naval Air Station, Brig, South Avenue, Pensacola, Escambia County, FL

Significance: Built in 1908, the small building with a corbeled brick cornice served as a prison until circa 1964. It is now a minimum security correctional center. // Constructed in 1908 as the Brig, Building No. 8 played a supporting role for installation security in the late years of the navy yard, and for Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola until 2004. One of a few structures built after the destructive 1906 hurricane, and just prior to the closure of the Pensacola Navy Yard in 1911, Building No. 8 replaced the storm-damaged guardhouse and prison that had served the installation since 1868. Early maps and documentation referred to the facility as a prison. Official records do not list an architect for the Brig, and the design is likely from the Navy's Bureau of Yards and Docks (BuDocks). Previous HABS research suggests that Building No. 8 was constructed by local builders under the supervision of the installation's civil engineer. The small, rectangular, brick building displays few distinctive architectural elements other than its hipped roof and an ornamental cornice with corbelled dentils. Considerable modifications to Building No. 8 occurred during the rapid expansion of NAS Pensacola prior to World War II. A 1941 remodel resulted in the removal of several original windows, concurrent with the construction of a 43'-0" extension to the west of the original building. Building No. 8 functioned as a guardhouse and prison until 1964, after which time the installation used the building as a minimum security holding facility. The building served in a storage capacity in recent years. While the building has sustained a moderate degree of alteration since its construction, it remains compatible to its original form in materials. Building No. 8 is located in the southeastern section of NAS Pensacole, within the boundaries of the Pensacola Naval Air Station Historic District, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The National Park Service designated this district as a National Historic Landmark (NHL) in 1976. Neither nomination clearly defines the district's period of significance, although Building No. 8 is identified as an historic resource within the district. HABS documentation for Building No. 8, prepared in 1972, provided little beyond construction date, materials, and function to further qualify its significance.
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: FN-62
Survey number: HABS FL-243
Building/structure dates: 1908 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1941 Subsequent Work
National Register of Historic Places NRIS Number: 76000595