Arrested in Oldest Jail Home St. Augustine Florida

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I don’t normally spend my holidays in jail, however once I do… I be certain it’s haunted, historic, and filled with picture ops.

Kevin and I had been wandering by St. Augustine, Florida—a metropolis that principally breathes historical past—after we discovered ourselves “locked up” on the Previous Jail. And let me inform you, this isn’t just a few dusty constructing with bars. It’s an expertise. If you have not learn our St. Augustine Journey Information but then test it our right here: A Non-beach Go-er’s Journey Journey Information to St. Augustine, Florida

We signed up for a daytime tour and had been greeted by a girl wearing full prisoner garb—our tour information. She didn’t simply speak concerning the jail… she grew to become the jailbird. Sass, sarcasm, and numerous “you don’t wanna find yourself like me, child” power. It was hilarious and weirdly immersive. The entire thing felt like half improv present, half ghost-free ghost tour.

The tour took us by the outdated jail cells, the place individuals had been as soon as crammed in with out air con (Florida warmth, y’all…), and sure, they even recreated the hanging space exterior. Tremendous eerie, even in broad daylight. But additionally fascinating.

One of many creepier touches? Mannequins. Yup. They’re arrange contained in the warden’s residing quarters, displaying what every day life might need regarded like. It’s purported to be instructional, however let’s be sincere—it’s type of creepy. Like Victorian dollhouse meets true crime documentary. Liked it.

I made Kevin snap a photograph of me behind bars—as a result of clearly. Then one other one within the out of doors cage close to the hanging space (a should for the Instagram grid, belief me). If you wish to lean all the way in which into the jailhouse vibes, convey a striped shirt and decide to the bit.

Prime Picture Tip:📍 Don’t skip the out of doors cage close to the gallows—it’s weirdly probably the most photogenic a part of the jail.

The Previous Jail in St. Augustine was inbuilt 1891—which makes it one of many oldest surviving jails in the USA. It was commissioned by none aside from Henry Flagler, the Gilded Age industrialist and railroad magnate who principally formed Florida’s east coast like a person enjoying SimCity.

Flagler needed a jail that was far sufficient away from his swanky new lodge (now the Lightner Museum!) however nonetheless practical. So, naturally, he satisfied the P.J. Pauley Jail Firm out of St. Louis, Missouri (hey, hometown shoutout! 🙌) to construct a jail that regarded like a fancy Victorian home on the skin, however was all enterprise inside.

And by “enterprise,” I imply bare-bones cells, poor sanitation, and nil regard for human rights. The jail housed women and men—typically even youngsters—and prisoners had been used for labor through the day. Punishments had been harsh, and public executions had been a factor. Essentially the most haunting half? Among the constructions from that period, together with the gallows, have been recreated on website to indicate what justice regarded like within the early 1900s. Spoiler: it wasn’t cute.

The jail operated for over 60 years, lastly closing in 1953, however not earlier than it noticed generations of inmates, excessive overcrowding, and the rise and fall of turn-of-the-century legislation enforcement. It was later remodeled right into a museum to protect this chapter of St. Augustine’s advanced (and type of brutal) previous.

The Previous Jail was strategically constructed to mix in, so guests wouldn’t be scared off by a spooky jail whereas visiting Flagler’s luxurious lodges.

The jail’s builder, P.J. Pauley Co., additionally constructed different infamous prisons—so, they had been type of the HGTV of creepy lockups.

Some declare it’s haunted (although no official ghost tour is run right here)… however let’s be actual, anywhere with gallows and mannequins in all probability has some spooky power lingering.

📅 We visited in Might and the climate was good—heat however breezy, and method fewer crowds than peak summer season.

☀️ Summer time will get packed, so ebook your tickets forward of time. This place is near the seaside, so it pulls in numerous vacationers.

🎟️ Excursions promote out, particularly in the event you’re bundling with different native sights (sizzling tip: combo tickets are cheaper).

📸 Convey your digital camera or a totally charged telephone—between the mannequins and the iron bars, you’re getting some weirdly aesthetic photographs.

⏰ Plan for about an hour, except you are deep-diving into each show plaque (no judgment if you’re).

I wouldn’t say going to jail was the spotlight of our St. Augustine journey… but it surely’s positively one of the vital memorable stops. It’s quirky, historic, a little bit creepy, and truthfully? Only a ton of enjoyable.

So in the event you’re wandering by the nation’s oldest metropolis and in search of one thing offbeat however instructional (with bonus Instagram factors), get your self arrested. Simply be sure to’re out in time for tacos.

Need to bundle this with a go to to the Castillo de San Marcos or Pirate Museum subsequent? Keep tuned—these tales are coming quickly, and so they contain cannons, ghosts, and no less than one parrot.

👇 Drop a remark in the event you’ve performed the Previous Jail Tour—or in the event you’ve obtained a bizarre historic website you assume I ought to take a look at subsequent!