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Old Idaho Penitentiary, Boise, ID

Photo: Seacheese234, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped and resized.

SightseeingHistory BuffRainy-Day Pick

Old Idaho Penitentiary

Tour the sandstone cell houses, solitary cells and gallows of a territorial prison that held inmates for 101 years.

2445 Old Penitentiary Rd · Boise, ID

About Old Idaho Penitentiary

The Old Idaho Penitentiary held inmates from 1872 until 1973, more than 13,000 over 101 years, behind a 17-foot sandstone wall cut from nearby ridges by the convicts. You can walk the prison yard and cell houses on a self-guided tour, including the solitary block called Siberia and a maximum-security cell house with a built-in gallows. The site also houses the J. Curtis Earl Memorial Exhibit of historic arms and military memorabilia.

  • #historic prison
  • #state historic site
  • #museum
  • #self-guided tour

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What's around here?

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