Suffolk County Jail - Boston, MA
Posted by: 
NorStar
N 42° 21.694 W 071° 04.222
19T E 329507 N 4691997
The former Suffolk County Jail, also called the Charles Street Jail, is a great granite structure by the Charles Street T Station and two hospitals and was once a state-of-the-art prison.
Waymark Code: WM6BG1
Location: Massachusetts, United States
Date Posted: 05/08/2009
Views: 6
In Boston's West End, where Main Street (Cambridge), Cambridge Street, Charles Street, and ramps to Storrow Drive meet in a tangled intersection, stands a grey granite structure flanked by more modern brick, steel and glass structures. This grey structure is now occupied by The Liberty Hotel. But once it was the jail for Suffolk County, which incorporates Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop.
On the nearest face of the nearest wing to the Red Line Charles Street/MGH station, is a green Bostonian Society sign. It says:
"Built in 1851, the Charles Street Jail is the culminating work of Gridley J.F. Bryant, the city's foremost architect of monumental granite forms (now known as the Boston Granite style).
"Pioneering prison reformer Rev. Louis Dwight collaborated with Bryant on plans for the new facility - a cruciform with four wings radiating from an octagonal center. Dwight's humanitarian approach toward prisoners called for rooms large enough for communal work and exercise as well as individual cells. This location on the Charles River produced additional benefits as well - fresh air and ample natural light through wall and cell windows. The jail served the county until 1990."
Most of the outside of the building has been preserved. A portion of one wing was truncated. Inside, the lobby is set up in the octagonal center. The space is open, so you can see the shape of the center part, as well as see how the wings came together. Off one wing is a hallway that still has prison doors and windows and has a little history station. There is even a restaurant/pub called "The Clink!" Come in and look!
Agency Responsible for Placement: The Bostonian Society
Year Placed: 2007 (Guess since the hotel was opened in the summer of 2007)
County: Suffolk
City/Town Name: Boston
Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]
Agency Responsible for Placement (if not in list above): Not listed
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