Greene County, Indiana

Greene County Jail History

204 County Road 70 E
PO Box 267
Bloomfield, Iindiana 47424

The history of Greene county jails is rather obscure. None seems to have been built prior to 1826.

On March 1, 1825, the contract for a jail was ordered to be let the next May.

A part of the donation to the county, in consideration of having the county seat located at Bloomfield, was an agreement to furnish on the ground, free of charge, the logs for a county jail. In May, 1825, these logs were called for.

Apparently this was not done; for in the July term of the board of justices, they repeated the order, stating more definitely "that the county agent proceed to put a jail on the public square, thirty feet South from the street, South of [where] the present courthouse stands". Again, in September the letting of the contract was ordered.

The jail was built in 1826, at a total cost of $412.50 [another sources states $201.05], its proposed location having been changed by the board. The jail was completed in November, 1826.

It must have been durably constructed for it served the county more or less efficiently for over thirty years.

In 1844, however, the grand jury reported that the jail was not in sufficient repair for the safekeeping of persons nor health of same".

It was repaired shortly afterward; three years later, the grand jury reported its condition as satisfactory, adding that it had been so for the past year.

Early in the decade of fifties, the old jail was sold for $10.75, and a new one was to be built.

THE WHITE RIVER VALLEY TIMES,
Worthington, Greene County, Indiana,
Thursday, August 5, 1859,
Volume 3, Number 24, Page 3, Column 1,

Our Jail Burned to Ashes!

On Sunday night last, our County Jail, at Bloomfield, was consumed by fire. It was the work of an incendiary. The three prisoners confined came near being suffocated to death. When the Jailor reached the building, the prisoners could not speak. The finally recovered and were taken to Spencer by Sheriff MOSS on Monday last.

A new jail was built by Andrew Downing, costing something in excess of $9,000, was built in 1859-60 [it is believed to be that this was a brick structure that stood on the east side of the square], and served until 1908, when the present jail (1939) was built.

Southside of the Square in 1909 at construction of the county jail

Located on the South side of the county jail was in use as late as the 1950's

The jail is in the background during the 1950's

Some time later another unsatifactory report about the jail was received from the state; no actual date is known. The county jail for several reasons was beyond repair and the jail site was un-suitable as a constuction site.

The Old County Jail at 217 E. Spring Street serves as an annex to the courthouse.

Plans were in the beginning stages in 1990. The Greene County Building Corporation was set-up to oversee the building of a new jail. The lot owned by Harry and Arrie Freeland was purchased at the corner of Spring and Judge Streets and the house razed and the new county jail was built one block east of its old location on the corner of Spring and Judge Streets. The total cost of the facility and property was approximately $4.7 million.

The new Greene County jail was finished on 25 January 1994. It is a 64 bed facility and a work-release center. The "Old Jail" site at 217 E. Spring St. at present houses the Greene County Health Department and is an annex to the court house

On 8 September 2005 two former Greene county Sheriff's - Gene Gastineau and Tom Franklin; the present sheriff - Leon Allen; present building corporation members: Amos Musselman, Plato Spencer and David West along with the present Greene County Council President Jim Oliphant gathered to burn the mortgage for the jail. The building corporation also at this ceremony handed over the deed for the building and property to the county commissioner President Bart Beard and in addition a check for $69,995.39 that was left over in the retainage account was presented to Greene County Council President Jim Oliphant which was deposited into the General Fund.

Last updated 30.10.2009