By Pam Wright, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Chatham Voice
Four retired correctional officers who worked at Chatham’s historic jail say they don’t mind doing a little more time.
The men, former guards who spent part of their careers at the imposing limestone structure will again serve as guides, offering curiosity seekers a final glimpse of the 176-year-old building before it’s turned into an apartment complex.
The 90-minute tours, running from April 15 until June 28, will give history buffs one last look before construction starts later this year. They come off the heels of tours held last year
The stories – ranging from a drug-fueled riot to a pair of executions – are legendary. The men enjoy telling them.
Bob Picard remembers a daring escape by a single prisoner in the 1990s. The man broke loose by making his way through the ceiling and ended up stealing a car and liquor from a nearby residence.
“The neighbour down the street called it in and said ‘I think you’re missing one body,'” Picard said.
Later, the escapee was nabbed by the OPP on Highway 401 when he lost control of the vehicle as he was too drunk to drive.
“The fellow was well versed in the correctional system,” Picard noted, “and it was his idea when he got in here was ‘how do I get out?’”
Dave Arnold recalls an infamous riot that also occurred during the ’90s, when prisoners got stoned and went wild, setting fires and flooding the cells. A special tactical team from London had to be called in to quell the disturbance.
“It was very bizarre behaviour,” Arnold said. “They were acting out, very aggressively. They decided to tear the place apart.”
Executions were carried out at the jail, Arnold said, occurring in December 1860 and again in December 1930. Both men were found guilty of murder and hanged.
The jail was closed by the province in 2014 and local prisoners are now transported to the South West Detention Centre in Windsor.
This jail was designated a heritage site in 2003. It was purchased from the Ontario government by the Warrener family who sold it to current owner Ed McLaughlin.
Along with an overgrown prisoner’s yard, tightly compressed cellblocks, dingy passageways, dormitories and stone walls, the former high-ceilinged federal courtroom and upper-level Kent Law Association library are intact. Accented by intricate wood carvings, the faded chairs and tables where judges, juries and those who were accused stand in silent tribute to decades of Kent County law and order.
Designed by Canadian architect William Thomas, the neoclassical limestone jail features a balustraded balcony and a crowning cupola. During its construction, future Canadian Prime Minister Alexander Mackenzie worked on it as a stone mason.
Project manager Les Lonsbary said common areas of the structure, such as the federal courtroom that features an ornate glass ceiling, will be preserved as part of the jail’s heritage designation.
The outside of the building will remain the same, Lonsbary said, while the interior will be revamped.
Tours can be booked online at Eventbrite under Chatham-Kent Courthouse & Jail Tours. Cost is $20, plus HST and fees. Tours take place Tuesdays and Thursdays from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. One tour will be held each Saturday from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
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