Gear Up to Visit the Rotary Jail Museum in Historic Downtown Crawfordsville
In 1882, the Montgomery County Jail and Sheriff’s Residence was the first rotary jail in the country, and it still operates today in historic, downtown Crawfordsville! When you visit what is now the Rotary Jail Museum, you’ll discover the origin of this fascinating structure and how it operates. Of the three remaining in the country, this is the only one that still rotates today.
What is a Rotary Jail?
Patented in 1881, this particular jail design was developed by architect William H. Brown and built by the Haugh, Ketcham & Co. iron foundry in nearby Indianapolis, Indiana. In this design, the jail cells were wedges on a platform that rotated in a carousel fashion. The surrounding of the entire level had a single opening, allowing only one cell to be accessible at a time.
The center core had a sanitary plumbing system, which was considered an unusual luxury in the late 1800s. The entire circular cell block could be rotated by one person operating a hand crank. The crank was connected to gears, and the entire structure was supported by a ball bearing surface allowing for smooth rotation. Ultimately, only 18 rotary jails were constructed, mostly in the Midwestern United States.
While innovative, there were problems with this design. Inmates’ limbs were crushed when the cellblocks rotated. Frequent malfunctions in the mechanism caused days of delays accessing prisoners. After a few years, most of the rotary jails had to be rewelded creating fixed position cells and refitted with typical individual cells, too.
Montgomery County Jail and Sheriff’s Residence – Crawfordsville
While other rotary jails were welding their wedge cells permanently in place, the Montgomery County Jail remained an operating rotary jail until the late 1930s. It was then the rotary device was disabled, but not destroyed. Until then, the jail could hold 16 prisoners at a time. Eventually, the jail closed permanently in 1973.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and as a National Historic Landmark in 2023, much was done to rescue and resurrect the Montgomery County (Rotary) Jail and Sheriff’s Residence. In 1975, the Montgomery County Cultural Foundation saved the jail from demolition and established the Old Jail Museum. The rotary mechanism was restored so it could operate again. There are only three rotating jails still standing today, and this is the only rotary jail still operating! Extensive restorations of the entire facility, including the attached Sheriff’s home, were completed in 1996. Since then, the former sheriff’s home has been used as an event space.
The Rotary Jail Museum
Open seasonally from early March through early December, hours vary month to month. Tours are complimentary with museum admission and are provided based on staff availability.
Admission:
$8 – persons 12+
$5 – kids 6-11
Free – ages 5 and under.
See the Rotary Jail in action. Hear the stories about the notorious prisoners held there. Discover for yourself – is this jail haunted? Join us soon to find out! Visit this unique incarceration destination! The address is 225 N. Washington Street, Crawfordsville, IN 47933
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