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Schuylkill County Jail

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1851–1852, Napoleon LeBrun; 1876–1877, Napoleon LeBrun and Sons. 230 Sanderson St.
  • (© George E. Thomas)

The first scheme for the county prison was intended for a Market Street site. Plans were drawn and work begun when it was decided to build on a site to the rear of the courthouse. LeBrun was simultaneously supervising the construction of the Montgomery County jail ( MO22). This structure is similar with a central tower rising above a massive Gothic front, and recalls, as well, Thomas Walter's Moyamensing Prison (demolished) in Philadelphia. Here the front block is of local brownstone that interweaves through the rougher yellow sandstone of the nearby hills. Sandstone was used for the prison walls and for LeBrun's 1876 addition, built as the trial and execution of the Molly Maguires was reaching its tragic final act.

Writing Credits

Author: 
George E. Thomas
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Data

What's Nearby

Schuylkill County Courthouse
Company H, Eighth Infantry Pennsylvania National Guard Armory (Pottsville Armory)
Garfield Square
Pottsville Free Public Library
North Centre Street

Citation

George E. Thomas, "Schuylkill County Jail", [Pottsville, Pennsylvania], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/PA-02-SC17.

Print Source

Cover: Buildings of PA vol 2

Buildings of Pennsylvania: Philadelphia and Eastern Pennsylvania, George E. Thomas, with Patricia Likos Ricci, Richard J. Webster, Lawrence M. Newman, Robert Janosov, and Bruce Thomas. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 2012, 449-449.

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