Black Jail - Guthrie, OK - Ghosts and Hauntings on Waymarking.com

This building, located at the intersection of 2nd Street and Noble Avenue was named by inmates "Black Jail" as it was constructed with 18-inch thick walls of dark limestone and brick. The original jail (shown in this gallery of pictures) (visit link) was a stone two-story building with a flat roof. The main entrance was on the second floor of the west wall. An outside set of stairs led to a metal cage built outside that entrance. This was the first federal Territorial Prison in the Midwest.

The building was supposed to be non-escapable when built in 1892, but a group of 14 inmates did escape in July of 1896 -- a group that included the infamous Bill Doolin.

The prison closed in the early 1900s. The building was later occupied by a religious group who used the building as a church until the 1970's. The building was later occupied by the Samaritan Foundation, a religious cult often associated with murder, scandal and conspiracy, and said to have members who were government activists and radicals. This group vacated the premises in 1995. The Department of Human Services officially closed the building in the late 1990s when the building was declared to be unfit for the children and families living there.

G.H.O.U.L.I. (Ghosts, Haunts of Oklahoma and Urban Legend Investigations) has conducted investigations at this location. Two recordings were collected which appear to contain voices.

One of the figures seen here is believed to be the ghost of James Phillips, a man sentenced to die at the jail in 1907, who was said to keel over in his jail cell and die of fright.

The voice of a young woman singing has been heard on the ground floor. She has been seen wearing a long printed dress and a large hat with gloves. She may be from the era when the building housed a church. A woman has also been noted outside the building walking on the grounds.

Public access?: No access is allowed to this building, which is vacant and condemned. A restoration plan is underway. Visting hours: None Website about the location and/or story: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:

• Please submit a photo(s) taken by you of your visit to the location (non-copyrighted photos only). GPS photos are also accepted with the location in the background, and old vacation photos are accepted. Photos you took of paranormal activity are great. If you are not able to provide a photo, then please describe your visit or give a story about the visit
• Tell your story if you saw, felt, or smelled anything unusual. Post pictures of what you saw.
• Add any information you may have about the location. If your information is important about the location, please contact the waymark owner to see if it can be added to the description.
• Be careful and do not enter areas which are off limits or look dangerous. No waymark is worth harm. Use your 6th sense, because sometimes there are unseen things which are telling you to stay out.
• Use care when using your camera flash so you do not disrupt any possible nearby residents. Time lapse can be the best tool on your camera in many circumstances.

 

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   05/11/2022 The Snowdog visited it 01/24/2022 Max and 99 visited it

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