The weather man was calling for below zero temperatures today with the windchill, and well to be quite honest with you, the thought of staying in the house all day did not sit well with me. For the entire week, we tried to find something to explore that was old, abandoned, historic that was within our ton of Pittsburgh, but we could not find anything that matched the necessary essentials. Well, and the fact that if we chose to tour or see something local we would not have a roadtrip in the mix.
So, I found the spot. We had actually tried to visit it in the past but it was not open. It is...The Ohio State Reformatory, aka, Shawshank. Yep, we drove three hours to Mansfield, Ohio to see this place. The movie, or part of the movie, was filmed here. They still have some of the props available for you to see, and in the warmer months they actually offer a Shawshank tour so you can see all the places in the prison used in the movie. However, on these cold days, they just have self guided tours with some audio. We chose for no audio and just walked the prison. May I tell you, if you are ever int he area or want to see a cool prison in Ohio, go here. It is no Eastern state, but it is awesome.
Let me tell you a little about it:
The place is left nearly as is. The paint is peeling off the walls and ceilings and the wallpaper in the warden's quarters is faded and torn. But what you can see if the grandeur of the building and the remarkable architecture of the establishment. The tour starts in the warden's quarters. The rooms are amazingly large and bright. The bathrooms were pink tiled and quite lovely. The wallpaper was exquisite, roses and patterns that must have been so lovely in it heyday. Each room had a closet with these beautiful wood builkt ins. I was actually a little jealous, they were that beautiful. The craftsmanship was second to none. Drawers still pulled out easily and they were so deep and sturdy. Each room had a grand fireplace and I can imagine how these families lived here safe and snug as a bug in a rug while "the other half" lived in cramped cold cells.
The next place we visited was the Chapel. This space was huge, beautiful and so amazing. Paint was peeling everywhere, but the pews were still in the space, the alter still standing front and center and signs of repentance all throughout the room. I think this room was my favorite because it was a surprise to me. We passed right by where Brooks and Red were once living (the mocked up room from the movie) and went up these once yellow steps. And then it opened up to this once maybe light blue, bright, open space. I could have spent all day there.
We then entered the prison part of the building. I think there were 6 levels, rows and rows of cells, small, cold, really cold, dingy, faded, peeling cells. Each had a trash can, a mirror, a sink, a toilet and two bunks. It was really small, did I say that already?
The tour took us all the way down the different levels. We then ended up in a center area. We saw solitary confinement which was scary dark and very lonely. This wrapped around and we were able to then visit the library. I really wanted to see more of this space, but the windows were broken and open and it was see your breath cold.
Finally, we found some heat as we saw the guard towers and also the central guard station. All of the spaces were just amazing. It was so worth the drive. we all had a blast and...on the way home, we found a stretch of highway with several abandoned spots. Too cold to do today, but as the weather improves, we are going to go back. Enjoy the jail!!!
So, I found the spot. We had actually tried to visit it in the past but it was not open. It is...The Ohio State Reformatory, aka, Shawshank. Yep, we drove three hours to Mansfield, Ohio to see this place. The movie, or part of the movie, was filmed here. They still have some of the props available for you to see, and in the warmer months they actually offer a Shawshank tour so you can see all the places in the prison used in the movie. However, on these cold days, they just have self guided tours with some audio. We chose for no audio and just walked the prison. May I tell you, if you are ever int he area or want to see a cool prison in Ohio, go here. It is no Eastern state, but it is awesome.
Let me tell you a little about it:
The place is left nearly as is. The paint is peeling off the walls and ceilings and the wallpaper in the warden's quarters is faded and torn. But what you can see if the grandeur of the building and the remarkable architecture of the establishment. The tour starts in the warden's quarters. The rooms are amazingly large and bright. The bathrooms were pink tiled and quite lovely. The wallpaper was exquisite, roses and patterns that must have been so lovely in it heyday. Each room had a closet with these beautiful wood builkt ins. I was actually a little jealous, they were that beautiful. The craftsmanship was second to none. Drawers still pulled out easily and they were so deep and sturdy. Each room had a grand fireplace and I can imagine how these families lived here safe and snug as a bug in a rug while "the other half" lived in cramped cold cells.
The next place we visited was the Chapel. This space was huge, beautiful and so amazing. Paint was peeling everywhere, but the pews were still in the space, the alter still standing front and center and signs of repentance all throughout the room. I think this room was my favorite because it was a surprise to me. We passed right by where Brooks and Red were once living (the mocked up room from the movie) and went up these once yellow steps. And then it opened up to this once maybe light blue, bright, open space. I could have spent all day there.
We then entered the prison part of the building. I think there were 6 levels, rows and rows of cells, small, cold, really cold, dingy, faded, peeling cells. Each had a trash can, a mirror, a sink, a toilet and two bunks. It was really small, did I say that already?
The tour took us all the way down the different levels. We then ended up in a center area. We saw solitary confinement which was scary dark and very lonely. This wrapped around and we were able to then visit the library. I really wanted to see more of this space, but the windows were broken and open and it was see your breath cold.
Finally, we found some heat as we saw the guard towers and also the central guard station. All of the spaces were just amazing. It was so worth the drive. we all had a blast and...on the way home, we found a stretch of highway with several abandoned spots. Too cold to do today, but as the weather improves, we are going to go back. Enjoy the jail!!!