Ever wonder what early jail life might be like? Then this is a tour for you! The 1 hour Guided Tour is actually three tours in one and includes the 1892 jail with ties to President Rutherford B. Hayes, the 1840's Dungeon located underneath the Sandusky County Courthouse and the Gallows Exhibition Hall featuring the gallows used for the last hanging in Sandusky County. Hear exciting stories while learning the significance of this rare and historic structure.

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Sandusky County built a dungeon in the early 1840s, after local officials experienced multiple escaped prisoners in a short time from the less secure, above ground jail. The earliest jails were essentially cabins which consisted of a small room with a dirt floors and a few iron bars on the window. Often local residents would volunteer up a room in their own homes for overflow for county inmates.

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When the first prisoners were incarcerated in the 1840's dungeon, they saw little daylight in the subterranean space, with the only illumination coming from kerosene lamps. Despite the terrible conditions, the dungeon was used for more than a decade before it was finally shuttered. Today, the Sandusky County Courthouse sits atop part of it, and guided tours of the Sandusky County Historic Jail & Dungeon have been offered since 2013.

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“It’s like stepping through a time portal. When you open that door, and you go into the dungeon area, it literally feels like you stepped back into the 1840s,” says David Thornbury, marketing specialist at the Sandusky County Convention & Visitors Bureau, which oversees the tours.

After hearing of paranormal accounts from courthouse staff, the Ohio Researchers of Banded Spirits did a paranormal investigation of the dungeon. The activity and evidence captured was off the charts and afterward, the county talked to them about offering paranormal tours.  These tours are offered several times per year and are extremely limited to 30 people and almost always sell out.