Jail time: Cecil Township Historical Society working to preserve local lockup
Photos: Katherine Mansfield
Completed in 1906 or early 1907, the Cecil Township jail housed just one prisoner before standing empty for more than a century.
Katherine Mansfield
The Cecil Township jail, which sits along Route 50, across from the old movie theater, is entirely made of brick and stone and boasts an artful arched roof, which is in need of repair.
Katherine Mansfield
The two 鈥渃ages,鈥� as Cecil Township called the cells in a notice to contractors published in the August 1906 The Daily Notes, are still standing inside the old jail, which is in need of repair.
Katherine Mansfield
A view from inside one of two jail cells in the Cecil Township 鈥渓ockup,鈥� as it was known when the building was erected along what is now Route 50 in 1907
Katherine Mansfield
A shot of the old Cecil Township jail鈥檚 exterior, which still sports a caged window that opens into the small lobby
In 1907, after years of deliberation, Cecil Township opened a two-cell jail, the only non-county jail in the area.
Shortly after the jail opened, one man was sentenced to a brief term in the brick prison. When he was released, the jail sat empty on a lot near North DePaoli Road, now Route 50, where it鈥檚 been slowly deteriorating for more than a century.
鈥淏efore this thing was built, the constable, if there were drunk folk that he arrested, he would have to take them to his house for an overnight stay. That probably got old,鈥� said Jim Zamiska, a lifelong history buff, Cecil native and president of the Cecil Township Historical Society.
The jail was a topic of discussion for years, and put to vote at least once, according to historical documents. In 1906, the township supervisors approved the project, and the jail was up and running by 1907.
鈥淭he more interesting thing, to me, is they used it (the jail) once. They had one guy,鈥� Zamiska said. 鈥淭here had to be more people. Why didn鈥檛 they use it anymore? What did they do with it? Was there a jail built somewhere else that took over, in close proximity? That鈥檚 what I don鈥檛 know.鈥�
The jail, which measures 15-by-15 feet overall, is divided into two sections: what was probably a lobby, and then two holding cells, each about 29 square feet (today鈥檚 average bathroom is between 36 and 40 square feet, Zamiska pointed out).
Each cell is 6 feet 2 inches high and had a pull-down frame made of steel, for lying on.
The jail sits in disrepair, ivy inching up its one-foot-thick brick walls. The Cecil Township Historical Society aims to breathe life into the jail that once was through a fundraising campaign, to renovate and restore the structure.
鈥淲ork had started on it a while back. There was talk of moving it; that kind of went by the wayside. Then everything got focused on that Coal Miners Memorial. That was a huge success, honoring the coal miners who perished from Cecil Township and then providing people (a place) to honor family coal members,鈥� Zamiska said. 鈥淭his was our next undertaking. Now it鈥檚 time.鈥�
The CTHS is seeking local business sponsorships and community donations to make the 116-year-old jail structurally sound. The jail needs a new roof, and the society is researching what other renovations are necessary to make the jail safe for the public.
Once the structural renovations are funded, the historical society will determine how best to use the historic jail, including how to manage the property and make it available to the community.
鈥淚t鈥檚 one heck of a piece. Hopefully we will be able to get this done and next year at this time, we鈥檒l see visitors coming to see it. That鈥檚 my timeline. I don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 a realistic timeline,鈥� Zamiska laughed. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot involved.鈥�
Zamiska envisions the renovated jail as a destination, where placards tell the still-unfolding story of the brick structure and people rent out the space for small events or fundraisers. He also hopes the renovations to the old jail spark an interest in Cecil history.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important to know where you came from and how we got where we got. Historical buildings, and what the town looked like 50, 200 years ago, is part of what we鈥檝e become,鈥� Zamiska said. 鈥淲hen I was growing up in the 鈥�60s and 鈥�70s, I did not even know this existed, and that can鈥檛 happen. You want people to know it鈥檚 here and make it something that they can brag about in their area. We still have an old jail from the early 1900s; it only got used once.鈥�
While little is known about the jail, including the name of the only gent to sleep it off in one of the cells, The Daily Notes printed several stories about the controversial 鈥渓ockup.鈥�
In Feb. 1906, an Uncle Banks wrote to The Daily Notes that while 鈥渘o Hotel-de-Booze exists鈥� in the township, many 鈥渄isorderly ones鈥� go unpunished because there is no jail.
鈥淏ooze hotels on the borders furnish the ammunition that fires the passion of otherwise civil men and when they are amply loaded they make their way into neutral territory and vent their spleen and devilish actions in, on and about the domiciles of the innocent,鈥� Banks wrote.
Between February and August of 1906, the township board of supervisors approved construction of a jail; on Aug. 14, The Daily Notes ran a notice to contractors for bids, for a 鈥渓ockup built of brick and stone, to be 15 feet square with an arched brick and cement roof.鈥�
An article published two days later voiced support for the jail.
鈥淭he question of the erection of a lockup has agitated Cecil township for some years past, and the matter has been voted on two or three times,鈥� the article stated. 鈥淪ince the Millers Run valley has become largely a mining community, the need of a lockup has been felt, as there are frequent outbreaks among the miners鈥︹��
Construction began in September, according to The Daily Notes, and by November the 鈥渃ages,鈥� or cells, and doors had arrived on site, the paper reported.
The precise date of the jail鈥檚 completion is not yet known, nor has the Cecil Township Historical Society stumbled upon information regarding the first 鈥� and last 鈥� inmate.
But in April 1907, the Notes shared a frustrated letter to the editor: 鈥淎bout a year ago the authorities of Cecil township erected a lockup in which to safely keep offenders arrested by the constables. Up to the present time, however, only one person has been confined in the township jail,鈥� the letter read, 鈥渁nd some of the taxpayers are wondering if they really got a run for their money.鈥�
When, or if, the jail officially closed is another missing piece of the structure鈥檚 puzzle, but the lockup was out of commission by mid-1907, less than a year after the building was completed.
鈥淚t just sat here,鈥� Zamiska said. 鈥淭he fact that it is (about) 120-something years old and it鈥檚 still like this is, you know? Whoever built it did a great job.鈥�
Zamiska and the historical society are hoping to do a great job renovating the piece of history that for so long has sat abandoned, waiting for someone to rediscover it and share its story. Zamiska encourages anyone with additional information about the jail to come forward and shed light on the small structure.
He also hopes the community will rally around the historical society to help raise enough money to complete the restoration project.
鈥淲ith a building like this, with the actual, physical structure, you can immerse yourself in (history). You can walk in there as a constable or as a scofflaw who was drinking too much last night and, you know, put yourself in that environment, in that situation, just to feel like what it was,鈥� Zamiska said. 鈥淎nybody who wants to help and anyone who wants to join the society, become part of it, is more than welcome.鈥�
To make a donation to the Cecil Township Historical Society, a 501漏(3) nonprofit organization, please send checks to: The Cecil Township Historical Society Inc., P.O. Box 48, Cecil, PA, 15321. All donations are tax-deductible.
To learn more about the CTHS, visit http://www.ceciltwphistoricalsociety.org/index.html.