pittsburgh penitentiary tours

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Exploring the Historical Jail Museum in Downtown Pittsburgh

Published by Jeremy . Last Updated on January 16, 2024.

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If you've spent some time walking around downtown Pittsburgh , odds are good you've seen the old Allegheny County Courthouse and Jail. This historical building is one of the most stunning in the city and even includes its own Bridge of Sighs walkway that connected the two buildings.

Today the jail has been decommissioned and converted into a Common Pleas court, yet many artifacts from the era exist and are available on display in the Old Allegheny County Jail Museum.

But if you want to check this one out you'll have to plan accordingly- it is only open from 11:30am to 1pm on Mondays, February to October!

The Jail Museum in Downtown Pittsburgh is Unique

The old Allegheny County Jail is an interesting spot for a number of reasons. It was built in 1886, in use until 1995, and is a gorgeous building on the exterior!

While most of the museum has now been converted, one wing of the cells was preserved and now contains a small display of historical paraphernalia, books, and images thanks to a quick-thinking employee who rescued the items at the time of the jail's closure.

The museum iteslef is split into three main sections. The first is a display case for the artifacts and notable prisoners (and prison breaks- one involving the warden's wife and her prisoner lover). The second is highlighting the imprisonment of children in the jail's early days (which ceased in 1901 due to the passage of the Juvenile Court Act). The third section features the jail cells themselves- roughly six or so rather small confines that held multiple people at once!

While the tour of this historical spot can be self-guided, the highlight here are the docents from the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation who really help bring the history of the space to life.

I was originally on my way out after my brief self-guided tour when I started to chat with a docent, and I ended up staying an extra half hour to talk more about the museum. Some of the most fascinating aspects was hearing all of the stories of former inmates who came back to see the jail, as its closure really wasn't that long ago at all, as well as the escape attempts over the years!

While it is a bit of an odd recommendation to head down to a court to check out a prison, there is something oddly fascinating about taking a look back into the history of one of the city's oldest buildings- even if it happens to be a prison.

A Few Notes Before You Visit

As mentioned at the start of this article, the museum is only open for about an hour and a half every Monday from February to October (excluding public holidays), but there are a few more things to keep in mind.

First of all, the building is still an active Common Pleas court. This means you'll have to go through security when entering the building (think airport-style screenings), but just tell them you are there for the tour and they'll let you right in. Second, no cameras are allowed inside, and no photos are allowed in the museum either (which is why you only get to enjoy photos of the exterior here!).

Suffice it to say, this one is an unusual museum in downtown Pittsburgh!

The Old Allegheny County Jail is located at 440 Ross Avenue at the current Allegheny County Family Division and open on select Mondays from February to October from 11:30 to 1.

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Western Penitentiary

Western Penitentiary, later known as SCI Pittsburgh, was a low-to-medium prison in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first prison west of the Atlantic Plain as well as a major Civil War prison in 1863–1864.

Walnut Street Prison, a city jail and penitentiary built in 1790 in Philadelphia, was considered to be the first of its type in the United States as it was built with individual cells and work details. But the state’s lack of financial provision for the expansion of the prison or the creation of new prisons led to severe overcrowding at Walnut Street.

The state responded to the decline of Walnut Street by ordering the construction of two new penitentiaries, and the legislature appropriated funds for the construction of the Western Penitentiary in 1818. 1 9 10 Architect William Strickland was hired to design the new facility and construction began shortly after along North Avenue. 1 The erection of the stone-walled prison, with a spoke-and-hub layout and walls three feet thick, was finished at the cost of $178,206 on July 1, 1826. The first inmates, consisting of eleven men and one woman, were admitted.

The new prison may have been an improvement over Walnut Street but the facility had become overcrowded and was considered inhumane by 1836. 1 Orders were given to demolish the cells and construct larger ones on the same site. William Haviland, who had designed Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, was hired to assist but instead of featuring seven radiating wings like at Eastern State, Western Penitentiary would feature three main wings with 230 cells connected to an administration building. An additional 94 cells and a hospital building were added in 1865, followed by a new building with 24 cells for female inmates in 1870. The new seven-foot by fifteen-foot cells for women were larger and featured gas lights, steam heating, and a four-inch window.

Western Penitentiary could not keep up with the demand for its cells despite the rebuilding and expansions, and the facility had become landlocked in a rapidly growing neighborhood. A new prison facility and site were desired, and it was decided that the abandoned Western House of Refuge along the Ohio River would serve as a suitable site. The Western House of Refuge had been founded in 1850 to serve as a home for wayward children but it soon became a home for juvenile delinquents. 1 2 Believing it suffered from poor sanitary conditions, the operators created the Morganza Reform School in Washington County in 1876 and sold their old facility to the prison in 1878.

Architect E.M. Butz was hired to design the renovations and expansions needed at the new site, with labor to carry out construction supplied by inmates who renovated the Administration Building and erected the new south wing and a residence for Warden Wright. 1 Upon the project’s completion in 1892, Western Penitentiary contained 1,280 cells spread between five tiers in two wings. It was the first prison in the world to feature gang locks, and electric lights, running water, steam heat, and a toilet in each cell. The new prison allowed for the growth of inmate labor and inmates worked in various trades that included making brooms, cigars, and shoes, weaving mats, and forging chains and other metallic objects. 1 Profit from the various trades helped to defray incarceration costs but legislation passed in 1898 curtailed inmate labor and regulated the production of goods and services only for the state.

Western State Penitentiary, once under the Department of Welfare, later fell under the Department of Corrections and the prison became known as State Correctional Institution (SCI) Pittsburgh in 1955. 1 Two new cell blocks and the Riverside Community Corrections Center were added in the 1980s.

The move to close the aging and cost-inefficient SCI Pittsburgh was long desired but it posed a challenge to shut down because it served as a diagnostic and classification center and housed medical services such as a cancer treatment unit. 12 SCI Fayette, near Brownsville, opened in October 2003 to replace SCI Pittsburgh, 11 and the last of Pittsburgh’s inmates were transferred to Fayette in January 2005. SCI Pittsburgh was mothballed in the event that it could reopen if the inmate population continued to grow. 3 7 11

In 2007, the state began preparing for the biggest expansion of its corrections system in a decade. 6 The new cells were needed to accommodate an additional 2,000 inmates because of mandatory sentencing laws. SCI Pittsburgh was reopened at the cost of $28 million 6 to house up to 1,500 low and medium-security inmates who required substance abuse treatment as part of the expansion. 4 It was expected that the prison would be opened for only three to five years.

On January 26, 2017, 8 it was announced that SCI Pittsburgh would close by June 30 as a result of state budget shortfalls and inmate population decreases. 7  It would save the state approximately $81 million annually. 7 8

• “ Western State Penitentiary: A Brief History ” Old Western Pennsylvania , 28 Apr. 2016.
• Eldredge, A.S. “ House of Refuge .” Pittsburgh Old Newspaper Project Updates , 2017.
• Lash, Cindi. “Fayette residents hope prison holds promise of better future.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 31 Jul. 2003.
• Barnes, Tom. “State prison system needs more cells.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette , 11 Mar. 2007, pp. B1-B3.
• McConville, Emily. “As shutdown of SCI Pittsburgh nears, inmates and staff move elsewhere.” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 9 Jun. 2017.
• Swift, Robert B. “State seeks more prison cells.” Daily Item [Sunbury], 11 Feb. 2007, pp. A1-A9.
• Langley, Karen. “State will close a prison in Pittsburgh.”  Philadelphia Inquirer , 27 Jan. 2017, p. B2.
• Scolforo, Mark. “SCI Pittsburgh shrinking as closing gets underway.” Standard-Speaker [Hazelton], 20 Feb. 2017, pp. A1-A11.
• “ Prison Records .” Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission, 2020.
• Meskell, Matthew W. “An American Resolution: The History of Prisons in the United States from 1777 to 1877.” Stanford Law Review , vol. 51, no. 4, Apr. 1999, pp. 841–853.
• “Pittsburgh state prison ships out last inmates.”  Public Opinion [CHambersburg], 14 Jan. 2005, p. 7A.
• Levy, Marc and Mark Scolforo. “Pennsylvania is shutting down SCI Pittsburgh state prison.”  Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 , 26 Jan. 2017.

[…] Image Source: abandonedonline.net […]

Prison is only used for movies/shows now. It has been permanently closed since 2017. I closed it down.

This prison isn’t abandoned. I have photos of the inside of the prison that were taken for my dad before it closed down the first time. He was a Sargent there for numerous yrs. Retired in 2000-2003. I can’t remember the exact year.

The prison isn’t abandoned. It is still in use for various projects and explorers should not attempt to visit.

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Self-Guided Tours of Old Allegheny County Jail Museum

During your self-guided tour of the Old Allegheny County Jail , a Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation docent will be on hand to tell you the history and stories of the County Jail. Completed in 1886 to the designs of Boston architect H. H. Richardson and in use until July 27, 1995, the former Allegheny County Jail was renovated between 1999 and 2001 to house the Family Division of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. A portion of one of the cell blocks has been preserved as the Old Allegheny County Jail Museum .

Self-Guided Tours of the Old Allegheny County Jail Museum  are available on Mondays until October 31 , from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm  at 440 Ross Street in Downtown Pittsburgh. For more information, visit the Old Allegheny County Jail Tour event page, or the PHLF Calendar . RSVP by sending an email to  Mary Lu Denny , or by calling 412-471-5808, ext 527 .

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Thursday, april 28, 2016, western state penitentiary: a brief history by doug macgregor.

Western State Penitentiary: A Brief History

The “first” western state penitentiary (1818-1836), the “second” western state penitentiary (1836- 1884).

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Western penitentiary: pittsburgh's action news 4 explores site's troubled past and likely future.

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Western Penitentiary — later known as SCI Pittsburgh — has stood in the city's Marshall-Shadeland section for more than 140 years. It has been closed, reopened and closed again. But going on seven years after its final shutdown, it still stands. Pittsburgh's Action News 4 has been digging deeper into its past, present, and likely future.

A look back at Western Pen's history: Watch the report by Pittsburgh's Action News 4 reporter Bob Mayo in the video above

Western Pen has a dark, violent history inside its walls.

It struck the family of Julie Smith.

"A hundred years ago, my grandfather, he was the yard sergeant, and he was shot and killed," Smith said.

A Pittsburgh Press headline from February 11, 1924, said, "Two guards die in prison, fire follows explosions at Western Pen. Convicts run wild." Inmates had smuggled in dynamite and guns.

Smith's grandfather, John Coax, was survived by two small children and his wife, who was seven months pregnant.

"They thought it was a gas, gas explosion. They ran to help the prisoners. And by then, they opened themselves up to being attacked and shot. They were both shot to death," Smith said.

It wasn't the last time for riots at Western Pen. On Jan. 19, 1953, headlines read, "Pen riot parley. Troopers ready to 'go get 'em.'" Newspaper accounts said, "600 police called out as convicts run wild." Troopers armed with sub-machine guns, rifles, pistols, and tear gas bombs."

Then, 30 years later, on April 14, 1983, the headlines said, "2 held hostage at Western Pen. 2 inmates grab guard, worker."

On Jan. 27, 1987, headlines read, "Fires spark another Western Pen riot" with 31 people injured. "Arson, chaos, fueled Western Pen violence."

What happened there sounds like the stuff of movies. In the years since its shutdown, this site's been a magnet for movie makers.

"We're really fortunate that SCI Pittsburgh exists, with all the history that's there, with those walls that are three feet thick, with the guard towers that still exist," said Dawn Keezer, executive director of the Pittsburgh Film Office.

Keezer says productions like "Mayor of Kingstown" and "Escape at Dannemora" have been drawn here.

"It was really fun to walk them in there and have one of the producers jump up and down in the middle of the yard and go, 'This place is amazing!' Right?" Keezer said.

But the end of movie-making within its walls will come.

Pittsburgh's Action News 4 has confirmed the Pennsylvania Department of General Services has contracted with a firm to draw up the plans to tear down Western Pen, remove hazardous materials and prepare it as a site for new industry — a place to bring jobs to the community.

"It's very clear the community really wants it to disappear. They want it completely demolished. And from the film industry perspective, what we'd really like to do is be able to use it to the day it's no longer there," Keezer said.

State Sen. Wayne Fontana's district includes the Western Penitentiary site. He says clearing its more than 20 acres and its nearly 40 buildings will take a long time.

"There's a lot of asbestos inside the main prison that would have to come out and be disposed of. So they projected it would take to 2027 to make it shovel-ready, site-ready," said Fontana, who represents District 42.

Fontana has years of files about attempts to bring something new to the site.

"Oh, absolutely. I think it's frustrating for everybody," Fontana said.

One prospective buyer in 2017 backed off after a study flagged the high costs of site cleanup.

"As it turns out, it looks like they're going to be spending at least $40 million there to get it site-ready," Fontana said.

Mayor Ed Gainey's chief of staff, Jake Wheatley, was once state representative for the Marshall-Shadeland North Side neighborhood surrounding Western Pen.

He sees the potential of the site for redevelopment.

"I mean, next to the Lower Hill site, next to the Hazelwood Green site, that would be the largest open site in the city that still has a potential to be developed," Wheatley said.

He noted that for years, city, county and state leaders have said, "That this site could be primed for redevelopment and that it could be something that could really put people back to work and really become a jewel for our city."

Five acres of the site along the Ohio River are expected to be turned into a public park.

In November, the state awarded KCI Technologies the contract to design and plan the remediation and demolition at Western Penitentiary.

Demolition may start in 2026 and be completed in 2027. Then, the property will be put up for sale by competitive bidding.

The bidding to buy the land is at least three years away.

The uncertain future of one of Pennsylvania’s most notorious prisons, SCI-Pittsburgh

Even bathed in sunlight, the sandstone walls of State Correctional Institute Pittsburgh look foreboding. They climb 60 feet into the air from the banks of the Ohio River, punctuated every few feet by towering stone archways. But the openings are so choked with metal bars it’s hard to believe any light gets through.

The darkness inside is one of the first things Pittsburgh photographer Mark Perrott mentions when he remembers walking through the prison in 2005 when the state briefly mothballed the facility.

“Light was precious. Spaces smelled like they had been left alone,” he said.

Perrott spent months photographing every inch of E Block, a sort of holding tank for first-timers and people who violated parole. Every inch of the walls was covered with graffiti and messages like, “I started this sentence on November 28, 2002, and it will end when I am put to sleep by the commonwealth.”

A security guard came up to where he was working one day and said, “You know they paint over this [stuff] every three years,” Perrott recalled. Which meant that underneath what he could see were decades of voices, trapped under paint.

“I was just so soul-shaken” by the thought, he said.

Now the walls themselves are likely to disappear.

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'something that will never get built again'.

Inmate populations in the U.S. have dropped in recent years, which means prison closures have increased. In other cities and towns, those complexes have sometimes been converted to things like distilleries, museums, and boutique hotels. Rob Pfaffman, an architect and preservationist, says he thinks something similar could happen in Pittsburgh.

“The community should be able to reclaim the structure, transform it and reuse it,” he said. “Instead of destroying lives as a prison, it's creating opportunity and lives by creating new jobs within the historic structure.”

The first wing of SCI-Pittsburgh, then called Western State Penitentiary, opened in its current location in 1882. The main Romanesque building was designed by Allegheny County-born architect Edward M. Butz. The imposing walls and building were topped with steep roofs and turrets. The National Register of Historic Places added SCI-Pittsburgh to its list in 2022, though the federal designation provides little protection against modifications or demolition.

“It’s something that will never get built again,” Pfaffman said. He believes the prison could find new purpose as a public space and workforce training center — and could prompt people to think critically about incarceration.

“It's much more compelling if you have a physical object that you can inhabit, that you can visit and understand,” he said. “Just as when you go to the sites of Nazi structures in Germany or the communist structures in Russia. ” 

That was the thinking behind preserving the ruins of the Eastern State Penitentiary, in Philadelphia. On its website , the nonprofit owner says tours are offered at the popular attraction in an effort to "deepen the national conversation about criminal justice."

But just up the hill from SCI-Pittsburgh, Angel Gober is unmoved by concerns about historic preservation.

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“That feels like a traumatized, harmful space that has incarcerated Black people for a very, very long time,” said Gober, the president of the Marshall-Shadeland Civic Group.

The U.S. imprisons people at a higher rate than nearly anywhere else , and a disproportionate number of those inmates are Black. SCI-Pittsburgh itself housed hundreds of thousands of people over its history.

“We don't want to keep something that has had a major negative impact on Black people and in our neighborhood,” Gober said.

The civic group’s vice president, Jamie Younger, said the organization hopes Governor Josh Shapiro will deliver on a promise by Governor Tom Wolf to “totally demolish the site and make it … ready to market to potential developers.”

Mayoral chief of staff Jake Wheatley, a former state representative whose district included Marshall-Shadeland, said he opposed the closure of SCI-Pittsburgh in 2017 because of the impact on jobs: At the time, the facility was said to employ 550 people. But now, Wheatley said his focus is to ensure the neighborhood benefits from redevelopment.

“We should continue the commitment by the state that the community voices are the most important voices … and uplift those people who are most impacted by whatever happens on the site,” he said.

Redevelopment and its benefits seemed just over the horizon at the time of SCI-Pittsburgh’s closure . But in the six years since then, there have been a number of false starts. Work has been slowed by challenges that include flooding concerns, the presence of asbestos in the facility, and a lack of funding to prepare the site.

But the site has drawn interest nonetheless.

'Not always the pretty stuff'

Standing on the Three Rivers Heritage Trail, which runs parallel to the prison’s walls, Dawn Keezer stared up, shaking her head slightly in a kind of disbelief.

“It looks amazing,” she said. “It has that imposing look.”

Keezer runs the Pittsburgh Film Office, which works to attract TV and movie productions to the region. That charge gives her a different perspective on things like the value of a hulking prison set just eight feet above a floodplain.

“What I sell is southwestern Pennsylvania and everything in it,” she said. “And it's not always the pretty stuff because that's not what people film.”

Six major projects have shot at the prison — including the television series Mindhunter and Mayor of Kingstown — and each generated money for the region. In 2021, the 11 projects that filmed in the area stimulated $330 million of economic development. The productions that have worked specifically at the prison have also invested some $500,000 in the structure to make it safe for cast and crew.

Last summer, the state hired Michael Baker International to conduct a feasibility study for the use of SCI-Pittsburgh. At one point, Michael Baker recommended saving part of the structure so Hollywood would keep calling . The study later noted that removing the historic structure “would directly and negatively impact the City’s marketability to the film industry and cause a direct loss of economic revenue and associated workforce training programs.”

Community input nixed the idea of preservation, and Keezer stressed that she supports the neighbors’ desire for something different. In the meantime, though, she’ll use the prison as long as she can.

While photographer Mark Perrott understands the urge to keep something of the historic building, he’s skeptical of halfway measures.

“Either let it be and let it rot or knock it down,” he said. “But don't make it suffer.”

State officials, too, back a total demolition. In an email, Madeline Williams, special assistant to the secretary of the state’s Department of General Services, said once the buildings are taken down and environmental remediation is complete, “the former SCI-Pittsburgh property will be a highly marketable ‘pad ready’ site with the potential to increase economic development and employment opportunities within the Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood.”

But it could be a while.

The governor has to find $45 million to pay for that demolition and remediation, and consultant Michael Baker estimates it will require in the neighborhood of $157 million to redevelop it.

That means SCI-Pittsburgh could be in limbo for years — just like its inhabitants once were.

PHLF: Old Allegheny County Jail Museum

Open on the first and third Mondays of the month through October (except on holidays) Visit at your convenience between 11:30 am and 1:00 pm

A PHLF docent is on hand to tell you the story of the place. Completed in 1886 to the designs of Boston architect H. H. Richardson and in use until July 27, 1995, the former Allegheny County Jail was renovated between 1999 and 2001 to house the Family Division of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.

A portion of one of the cell blocks has been preserved in the “Old Allegheny County Jail Museum.” The Jail Museum was created through a grant from the Drue Heinz Trust to PHLF, in cooperation with the Allegheny County Juvenile Court and Curator Ed Urban, former Deputy Warden.

The Jail Museum, which is located in Downtown Pittsburgh at 440 Ross Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, opened in 2005. Enter the Family Court Facility through one of two entrances. In both cases, you must go through security, and NO cameras are permitted.

• Either enter through the main Ross Street entrance.
• Or, enter through the great courtyard arch on Fifth Avenue.

For further information––or to double-check that the Jail Museum will be open on a particular Monday, contact Mary Lu Denny: at [email protected] or call 412-471-5808, ext. 527.​

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Self-Guided Tours: Old Allegheny County Jail

February 1, 2016 @ 11:30 am - 1:00 pm.

A PHLF docent is on hand to tell you the story of the place. Completed in 1886 to the designs of Boston architect H. H. Richardson and in use until July 27, 1995, the former Allegheny County Jail was renovated between 1999 and 2001 to house the Family Division of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. A portion of one of the cell blocks has been preserved as the “Old Allegheny County Jail Museum.”

The Jail Museum was created through a grant from the Drue Heinz Trust to PHLF, in cooperation with the Allegheny County Juvenile Court and Curator Ed Urban, former Deputy Warden. The Jail Museum opened in 2005. Enter the Family Court Facility through one of two entrances. In both cases, you must go through security and NO cameras are permitted.

• Enter through the main Ross Street entrance.
• Or, enter through the great courtyard arch on Fifth Avenue.

Contact: Mary Lu Denny, [email protected] or 412-471-5808, ext 527

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Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation

100 West Station Square Drive, Suite 450

Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Phone: 412-471-5808  |  Fax: 412-471-1633

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• (Buildings: Western Pennsylvania Penitentiary)
• ca. 1885-1896

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• Carnegie Museum of Art 85.4.15
• Description
• View of Western Pennsylvania Penitentiary from across the Ohio River. Now called the State Correctional Institution, the penitentiary (or prison) was originally built in 1876-82. It still stands today at Doerr Street on the Ohio River at Woods Run. The turrets with their dormers and arched windows have been removed and the building looks considerably more sober today. E.M. Butz, architect.
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• Rivers--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh. Architecture--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh. Ohio River. Prisons--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh. Western Pennsylvania Penitentiary (Pittsburgh, Pa.) Doerr Street (Pittsburgh, Pa.) Woods Run (Pittsburgh, Pa.) State Correctional Institution (Pittsburgh, Pa.) Butz, E. M.
• Carnegie Museum of Art Collection of Photographs, 1894-1958
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• Carnegie Museum of Art
• Carnegie Museum of Art Collection of Photographs
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• Copyright Not Evaluated. The copyright and related rights status of this Item has not been evaluated. Please refer to the organization that has made the Item available for more information. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/CNE/1.0/

Historic Pittsburgh is a collaborative effort from  multiple institutions  in the Greater Pittsburgh region and is hosted by the University of Pittsburgh’s Library System .

West Virginia Penitentiary

Historical and paranormal tours in moundsville, wv, featured tours.

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Guided Day Tours

This guided 90-minute tour walks you through this gothic-style structure and focuses on the main level of our facility.

• Roam at your own pace
• Hour Glass 4 hours
• Users 18+ y/o

Photography Tour

Introducing West Virginia Penitentiary’s Photography Tour! This is not a guided tour; you can roam at your own pace and leisure.

• Hour Glass 1 hour
• Users 12+ y/o

Escape the Pen

Escape games are a type of adventure game in which you are locked in a themed room with other participants trying to find your way out.

• Most Popular Tour
• Hour Glass 6 hours

Public Ghost Hunt

Want to see what it is really like to spend the night in prison — but with no living residents? Tour the facility with a guide for a 90-minute guided tour, and then roam the halls on your own.

Private Paranormal Investigations

If things aren’t spooky enough during the day, you can visit the prison overnight. If you are searching for paranormal activities or just want to experience the penitentiary at midnight, here is a great chance.

• Hour Glass 3 hours
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Twilight Tour

Enjoy an evening at the prison during the twilight hours on select Fridays and Saturdays!

• Users 15+ y/o

Thriller Thursday

Why wait for the weekend to have fun? Get started early with Thriller Thursdays! Spend three thrilling hours with us that you won’t soon forget!

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Princess Tea

Join all of your favorite Princesses for a Magical afternoon of fun!

We’re so excited to announce the West Virginia Penitentiary Paranormal Convention! We will have multiple paranormal speaking events, vendor booths, psychics, concessions and much more!

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The Dungeon

Join us on a Nightmarish trip through our Dungeon of Horrors haunted house!

Guided Paranormal Walk through the some of the oldest and most active parts of our facility. This 45-minute tour is only offered during our haunted house season.

WHERE HISTORY MEETS MYSTERY!

Built in 1866 and decommissioned in 1995, this former state penitentiary now offers day tours, paranormal investigations, escape rooms, a haunted house in October, and large events in our event center!

ONE OF THE BEST EXPERIENCES IN WEST VIRGINIA

The location is amazing! Whether you are looking for a paranormal experience or just a historical one, this place never disappoints! Our tour guide, Chuck, was wonderful as well.

We had a great time. We took the history tour and were very pleased. Our tour guide Jason was excellent. The tour was very informative and we saw many different parts of the prison. Would definitely recommend.

Had a great time attending the overnight ghost hunt. Prison is beautiful and so creepy! You will not be disappointed we had a lot of activity.

This escape run was so much fun!! We enjoyed every part of it !! It was so exciting and we were happy to escape and save lefty!!

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School & Group Tours

Explore an old prison for new ideas. Your group will learn more about the world’s first true penitentiary, discover the spaces and stories held within its walls, and reflect on Eastern State Penitentiary's relevance today.

We are currently accepting reservations for guide-led group tours, self-guided audio tours, and virtual group tours.

Visit the corresponding page below to learn more and book your tour today ! All private tours can also be scheduled by emailing Francine Schiffman (Senior Manager, Group Sales and Events) at  [email protected] .

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School Tours

Eastern State offers both self-guided tours and interactive guide-led tours and workshops for schools that explore the penitentiary’s history and relevance today.

General Interest Group Tours

Groups of all ages and interests enjoy self-guided and guide-led tours of Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site.

Virtual Group Tours

Groups can virtually partake in Eastern State Penitentiary’s award-winning guided tour program! These live, interactive, discussion-based experiences are perfect for both schools and general interest groups.

Evening Group Visits

Groups also receive discounted tickets for select evening events throughout the year.

Halloween Nights at Eastern State Penitentiary  runs select nights from September 20 - November 9, 2024. Explore haunted houses, historic tours, immersive walkthroughs, themed bars, and more! Discounts for groups of 20+.  Learn more

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