{"nrhp_refnum":"82003665","name":"Old Wayne County Jail","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"W. North St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Wooster","county":"Wayne County","state":"OH","lat":40.799416818000054,"lon":-81.94203090499997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1982-04-29","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story red brick former county jail on West North Street in downtown Wooster, Ohio, with an Italianate sheriff's residence in front (built c. 1865) and a turn-of-the-century Richardsonian Romanesque cellblock behind.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is an impressive example of Italianate architecture and an increasingly rare example of late nineteenth century prison architecture. Its domestic front and fortress-like rear show how Ohio county jails combined a sheriff's residence with a cellblock. The front section is also one of the largest and earliest surviving structures in downtown Wooster, and similar jails in nearby counties have nearly all been demolished.","narrative":"Located in downtown Wooster, Ohio, the Old Wayne County Jail combines two buildings of different eras under one roof line. The front portion, built about 1865 after the earlier stone jail burned in 1863, is an Italianate brick residence that housed the sheriff's family. Behind it stands a large cellblock added around 1900, in Richardsonian Romanesque style, with banded sandstone, a stone dentil cornice, a massive hip roof, and a non-combustible masonry and metal frame. The jail served Wayne County for over one hundred years. Its domestic front and fortress-like rear show how Ohio county jails once paired a sheriff's home with a cellblock. Such jails are disappearing, and nearby counties have demolished nearly all of theirs. The county had planned to demolish this one for parking, but a developer bought it. The plan called for restoring the exterior and front interior and converting the cellblock and garage to retail and office space.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Italianate (front section) and Richardsonian Romanesque (rear cellblock)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Work in progress: the building was being redeveloped for retail and office use, with a restaurant proposed in the former cell area. The facade had been restored and the interior cells were to be removed.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:11.872365-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/82003665.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003665/88c82bc9b4-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/82003665/88c82bc9b4-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Nyttend","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Wayne_County_Jail.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Nyttend</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_Wayne_County_Jail.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71991980","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q138764345"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/wayne-county/old-wayne-county-jail-82003665/"}