Did you know that when the 1869 bond to build a Jail in Allen County passed, it was done so with a budget of $8,400?
The 35-by-37 foot limestone structure featured a second story used to house the jailer (and family). The downstairs housed inmates from Allen County and surrounding areas. The jail officially opened in 1869 and was used until 1958, when it was replaced with our current county jail.
When one thinks of any jail or prison, one naturally expects them to keep the bad guys in. For us here, however, that was just not the case. From pretty much the start, the old county jail was known for its many escapes and failed attempts.
If the walls of the jail could talk, they would likely love to tell of the more notorious ones. (Well, they would probably first like to tell Kurtis, director of the historical society, to stop singing when alone in the jail. He’s just no good.)
One of the more comical escapes occurred in August 1900, when Ben Smith and Robert McCelland used a saw given to them by Mrs. Smith, who hid the saw inside a cake. The two also used nitric acid to help weaken the metal bars. How they obtained the acid is unknown.
Another legendary escape occurred in February 1924, when Leon Ramsey simply told the jailer he needed to go to a court hearing. Quite incredibly, he was permitted to do so — and alone. Who would’ve thought it could be so easy?
In June 1888, we can only imagine it took William Rouff some time for his jailbreak to happen. William, whose alias was William Sheldon, managed to make a wood key for the padlock of the wall’s grating, and then made a hole in the wall to escape. Must have taken time. But then again, he had plenty of it.
Thanks to Roger Carswell’s research, the historical society is accumulating a record of jailbreaks from the Old Allen County Jail and its 89-year history. We look forward to sharing it with the public soon.
