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 Pauley Jail Museum |
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The oldest surviving jail in the state, the Pauly Jail, erected in 1897, is a three-story red brick structure.
The Victorian Gothic style building is almost square in plan and looks like a small donjon or brooding house.
Cement coats the foundation and the lowest courses of brick. Rusticated stone lintels are located over the door and windows.
The castle-like facade features small projecting square brick turrets with witch's hats (spiked metal caps) at the corners. The building has a metal hipped roof. The entrance is a single door on the ground level.
On the third level, a trap door is set in the floor. The door, which could be opened by pushing a lever, was designed for hanging condemned prisoners in the early 1900s.
Today the jail serves as a museum. It sits behind the 1871 Second Empire Style Courthouse, adjacent to a beautiful landscaped park and gazebo. A restoration of the jail was completed in 2000.