The building was designed and constructed by the P.J. Pauley Jail Building and Manufacturing Company of St. Louis, Missouri in 1891. Its construction was financed by Henry Flagler, who struck a deal with the county for $10,000 because the former jail building stood on land that Flagler needed for the construction of his Ponce de León Hotel.[2] The Old Jail served as the St Johns County Jail until 1953. After the jail facilities were moved to a new, more modern building, the vacant Old Jail building was sold to entrepreneur Henry "Slim" McDaniel who began operating the remarkably well preserved building as a roadside tourist attraction. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.
Originally built to house up to 72 prisoners, the two-story northern wing of the Jail consists of a general population and maximum security area, a women's section and a lower level kitchen. Maximum Security housed the most dangerous prisoners held at the Jail and includes a Death Row cell, for those condemned to die. A total of eight men were hung from the Gallows on the Jail compound during its history. Overall conditions at the Jail for those serving varying sentences were quite poor by modern standards and prisoners were typically used as free farm laborers during the day. Baths were infrequent, toilet facilities consisted of one bucket per cell and diet was poor and was typically supplemented by any animals that the prisoners might catch while working on the fields. Segregation by race was steadfastly adhered to at the Jail and disease, violence and death were commonplace. The two-story southern wing of the Jail consists of an Office for the Sheriff and living quarters for his family.
Old Jail Museum
The Old Jail Museum consists of a restored jail with sheriff's living quarters. It also contains a display of weaponry and a pictorial history of the hangings carried out at the Old Jail, with emphasis on the time the Sheriff CJ Perry was in residence with his family. The Jail is only accessible by guided tour, with costumed guides "processing" in the new prisoners. The Jail also serves as the grand finale to Old Town Trolley's Ghost and Gravestones tour, allowing visitors to access the building by night as well.
^"St. Augustine history: What happened behind the walls of the Old Jail?". St. Augustine Record. 2015-06-15. Retrieved 2022-02-19.
External links
St. Johns County listings at National Register of Historic Places
Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs
St. Johns County listings
St. Johns County markers
Media related to Old St. Johns County Jail at Wikimedia Commons
Roadside America article about the museum
Information from the City of St. Augustine
March 13, 2023
johns, county, jail, this, article, needs, additional, citations, verification, please, help, improve, this, article, adding, citations, reliable, sources, unsourced, material, challenged, removed, find, sources, news, newspapers, books, scholar, jstor, februa. This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Old St Johns County Jail news newspapers books scholar JSTOR February 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message The Old Jail also known as Authentic Old Jail is a historic jail in St Augustine Florida It is located at 167 San Marco Avenue On August 27 1987 it was added to the U S National Register of Historic Places The St Johns County Jail now serves as the Old Jail Museum Old St Johns County JailU S National Register of Historic PlacesLocationSt Augustine FloridaCoordinates29 54 28 N 81 19 8 W 29 90778 N 81 31889 W 29 90778 81 31889 Coordinates 29 54 28 N 81 19 8 W 29 90778 N 81 31889 W 29 90778 81 31889Architectural styleRomanesque RevivalNRHP reference No 87001427 1 Added to NRHPAugust 27 1987 Contents 1 The Old Jail 2 Old Jail Museum 3 References 4 External linksThe Old Jail EditThe building was designed and constructed by the P J Pauley Jail Building and Manufacturing Company of St Louis Missouri in 1891 Its construction was financed by Henry Flagler who struck a deal with the county for 10 000 because the former jail building stood on land that Flagler needed for the construction of his Ponce de Leon Hotel 2 The Old Jail served as the St Johns County Jail until 1953 After the jail facilities were moved to a new more modern building the vacant Old Jail building was sold to entrepreneur Henry Slim McDaniel who began operating the remarkably well preserved building as a roadside tourist attraction It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 Originally built to house up to 72 prisoners the two story northern wing of the Jail consists of a general population and maximum security area a women s section and a lower level kitchen Maximum Security housed the most dangerous prisoners held at the Jail and includes a Death Row cell for those condemned to die A total of eight men were hung from the Gallows on the Jail compound during its history Overall conditions at the Jail for those serving varying sentences were quite poor by modern standards and prisoners were typically used as free farm laborers during the day Baths were infrequent toilet facilities consisted of one bucket per cell and diet was poor and was typically supplemented by any animals that the prisoners might catch while working on the fields Segregation by race was steadfastly adhered to at the Jail and disease violence and death were commonplace The two story southern wing of the Jail consists of an Office for the Sheriff and living quarters for his family Old Jail Museum EditThe Old Jail Museum consists of a restored jail with sheriff s living quarters It also contains a display of weaponry and a pictorial history of the hangings carried out at the Old Jail with emphasis on the time the Sheriff CJ Perry was in residence with his family The Jail is only accessible by guided tour with costumed guides processing in the new prisoners The Jail also serves as the grand finale to Old Town Trolley s Ghost and Gravestones tour allowing visitors to access the building by night as well References Edit National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service July 9 2010 St Augustine history What happened behind the walls of the Old Jail St Augustine Record 2015 06 15 Retrieved 2022 02 19 External links EditSt Johns County listings at National Register of Historic Places Florida s Office of Cultural and Historical Programs St Johns County listings St Johns County markers Media related to Old St Johns County Jail at Wikimedia Commons Roadside America article about the museum Information from the City of St Augustine Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Old St Johns County Jail amp oldid 1101855080, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
