1880

A few weeks ago Dave and I were walking around a nearby historic town when we discovered and a old historic prison. This three story prison has since been converted to an office, but pieces of it’s history still remain intact.

Built in 1880, the prison has had such noted guests as Frank James, Ray Hamilton and Charles "Tex" Watson. In 1979, after 99 years of service, the prison closed as a penal institution.

Interestingly, there were only three legal hangings in this prison before the state took over capital punishment. The first was Stephen Ballew in 1870, followed by Shack Culwell in 1882. The last person to be executed was Ezell Stepp in 1921. Mr. Stepp was convicted of the killing of Hardy Mills and was hung from a board spanning two upper windows of the prison.