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The second jail was also
made primarily of wood and would serve for 13 years until it was destroyed in 1839 by
fire. The third was built to withstand flames. Made of rough stone and brick, it was torn
down when the current facility was built in 1875.
Prior to its destruction, it housed the only locally executed person, a Rumley man, Alfred Artis, who was
convicted of killing his 12 year-old daughter, Emma. Artis was incarcerated in February,
1854, and held throughout his trail. He kept Emma cruelly chained in a shed beginning in
November, 1853, during the winter months until she died due to the deprivation of food,
water, and clothing. Local witnesses testified as to Emma’s abuse with her father
placing an iron collar around her neck and beating her with a pole. The severe cold caused
Emma’s hands and feet to freeze as well.
It would take two juries and a little over a year for the authorities
to convict Artis. A deputy sheriff constructed a special set of chains to hold the man
known throughout the area for his unusual strength. On the day of his execution, Artis
refused to climb the stairway of the scaffolding, so he had to be beaten and dragged up to
the gallows. A large crowd gathered and watched this history-making public execution. |
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In 1875, the Victorian
Italianate jail was built at a cost of $38,600. It was designed for two uses; the front
portion would serve as the sheriff’s residence and the rear cell block as a
jailhouse. The ornate brick structure features panels and paired brackets lining the
frieze of the low-pitched roofline. Stone hoodmolds, bracketed sills and quoins at the
corners complete the ornamentation. The rock-faced stone cell block attached to the east
side is an original feature.
Next to the jail, to the east, is a two-story Romanesque Revival steam
plant that still supplies power for the Jail and Courthouse.
It was originally built apart from the Courthouse to eliminate the danger of explosion
and/or soot discoloration to the newly-built facility. When the ‘Great Flood’ hit in 1913, an
emergency hospital was established in the upper portion, giving this building the
distinction of housing Sidney’s first hospital. The jail facility was closed in
1994 when a new building was completed on Gearhart Road. The structure may soon face the
wrecking ball. |
