Old Jail: 19th Century Jail Tour

It has been renovated on the inside to give you a true look at what the world was like for these inmates in the 19th and 20th centuries. There are actors that play the parts of past jail occupants and you can even get booked as an inmate. You will see the women's cells, men's cells, and the maximum security cells! There is also a collection of artifacts and weapons in the museum. 

 

History of the Jail

If you walk by the jail, you may not even realize that what it is; this is no mistake. It was built to look like a hotel with a Romanesque Revival style. In 1891, Henry Flagler hired the company that would one day build Alcatraz (P.J. Pauley Jail Company) to construct a jail in the city, just north of downtown. He did not want the jail to create an eyesore for visitors, residents, or investors so he decided to disguise it. The barred windows were one of the only indicators that this was a jail; he still wanted it to be a fortress to keep the city safe. It served as the city's jail until 153 and during its working years, the jail held some of the area's most dangerous criminals.