Kent Jail
Also known as: Old Jailhouse
Why it's listed
Built in 1869 by a local builder, this small brick jail served Kent, Ohio, after the village was incorporated and its first mayor ordered a lockup to deal with minor offenders, including hoboes arriving by train. It was used as a jail until the 1930s, when another jail opened in the basement of City Hall. The building then housed city offices and was later vacant for several years in the 1940s. In December 1999 it was moved about six tenths of a mile to Fred Fuller Park to make way for a drugstore. Restoration in 2000 added a new foundation, a rear shed-roof addition and a deck. The one-story, side-gabled building has Italianate-influenced details, including tall narrow windows, undulating porch brackets and a corbel table under the eaves. It is regarded as one of only three surviving village lockups of its kind in eastern Ohio and Kent's only surviving nineteenth-century municipal building.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the jail meets Criterion C as a rare surviving village jail, one of only three known in eastern Ohio and the only one in Portage County. It is also Kent's only surviving nineteenth-century municipal building. Despite the move, it is said to keep much of its integrity of design, materials, workmanship, feeling and association.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 01000895, listed August 22, 2001. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 947 Middlebury Rd., Kent |
|---|---|
| County | Portage County |
| Listed | August 22, 2001 |
| Reference number | 01000895 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1869 |
| Architect / builder | Unknown (built by a local builder) |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Moved in 1999 and renovated in 2000; now owned by the City of Kent Parks and Recreation Department, with current functions listed as recreation and culture (museum) and work in progress. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 41.15013, -81.36831 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 01000895.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q6391795
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.