A couple of nights in the County Jail

My kids stayed a few nights at the elegantly restored jail house when they visited Galena, Illinois. It was used as the county jail from 1878 until 1975. The building was empty for many years before it was purchased and converted into an award winning 6 suite luxury inn.Jail Hill Inn was named No. 1 in the US by TripAdvisor. Depending on the day of the week and the season, rooms range in cost from $295 up to $445 a night.

Construction of the $16,000 jail began in 1878 to replace the older jail that was destroyed by fire. The structure cost $16,000 to build. The bottom two floors of the four story building served as offices and a residence for the sheriff. The 3rd floor was for male inmates and there was a brick and steel barrier between the 2nd and 3rd floors to protect the sheriff and his famy. The 4th floor was for female prisoners.

A delicious 3 course breakfast was served each morning and in the afternoon a tray was delivered to the room with lovely homemade snacks and sweets and a bottle of wine.

This bit of art was created from old carvings dug into the cells prisoners.

There was a book of old newspaper clippings in the guest suites. One told of the man who stole an overcoat off a display dummy in front of the dry goods store when the weather started getting cold. He put it on and walked away, and was quickly apprehended. Since he didn't have the money for bond he was taken to the county jail, where it became apparent that he was quite pleased to have free room and board and a place to get an out of the cold.

It's no wonder that he wished to be there. I read that on Thanksgiving the Sheriff and his wife provided a meal that included roast turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, 3 different vegetable dishes, homemade bread, jello, cake, and pumpkin pie.