THE CORNWALL JAIL - PART I

Visited: October 2008
CORNWALL Ontario


The Cornwall Jail is a unique museum capturing the history that is often untold: the correctional system of Ontario. From the museum's website: "Built in 1834, the Jail operated until 2002 when the Ministry of Correctional Services closed the facility in favour of newer, larger facilities in major cities. "

It has been preserved as it was when the prisoners left. It has not been painted over. It has not been politically sanitized. It smells. It is fascinating. And it may be haunted.

Going inside was like stepping back in time. I felt black and white captured that mood.

The jail was intended for only 50-60 inmates. More than 100 were kept here at its height. There were never more than 3 guards on duty at one time. This meant activities like 1pm exercises in the courtyard frequently did not happen because inmates could not be controlled.

MAIN FLOOR

The Control Room.

Mannequin guard. Does he come to life at night?

Privileges inmates could buy from the past.

The visitation area.

Solitary Confinement. Notice the cement bed.

A standard cell. The hole at the foot of the bed was for the pot which was used as a toilet. It was not uncommon for the guard in the morning to have said pot thrown at him.

A communal toilet.

The communal shower. There was a hole in the shower so I poked my camera inside. It appeared the museum was using it for storage of shelves and paintings.

The graffiti has been left untouched to preserve history. Except for a few extremely offensive depictions.

There is a fan in this room that is quite loud. I was told that prisoners who have returned to visit still talk about how the sound haunts them and that they cannot forget it.

A re-creation of the gallows. 10 people were hung and many more died in the jail. Many were buried in this courtyard. When the newer section was added to this courtyard in the 1960's, they found 3 'cells' that were laid flat in the ground like coffins where prisoners were lowered down as punishment. There had been no record of these cells.

ON TO PART II