Old Somerset Co. prison is a hidden gem to explore

By: WJAC Web Staff

SOMERSET, Pa. -- Housed in an old building next to the Somerset County Courthouse, it's a location that many may not know exists. It certainly isn't eye catching, but it harbors a history unlike any other in the area.

The old Somerset County jail sits along East Union Street in Somerset. It was built in 1890 and housed thousands of prisoners over the years.

Patsy Shaffer, who works for the county, gives tours of the old facility.

"I say it's one of Somerset's best kept secrets," Shaffer said.

Eight men were executed in the building, with the hooks for the gallows from which they were hanged still in place.

"This is one of the only jails in the state of Pennsylvania that has indoor gallows," Shaffer said.

The first execution was a double one. Brothers Joseph and David Nicely were sentenced to die for killing a farmer from Jenner Township.

Back then, tickets were needed to watch executions, and they were a hot ticket. Only 35 were made available, but hundreds of people played a sort-of lottery to try to get one.

"It was supposedly a very big attraction back then. The public would gather outside the jail," Shaffer said. "They said when the hangings were over the trap doors made a noise and the public would cheer because the hanging was over."

The nooses that hanged the Nicley brothers remain on display in a glass case in the center of the prison. The last hanging happened in 1913.

"After that, they sent you to Bellefonte, to Rockview prison, that's where the electric chair was," Shaffer said.

The jail housed prisoners for several more decades and there are many stories about the men and women who were housed there who tried to escape.

"The sheriff and his daughter were playing hide and seek one evening and she looked up and said, 'Daddy, there's guys going out the window,'" Shaffer said. "He said, 'Nah.' [Then] he looked and sure enough, they were going out the window."

Prisoners who were really bad were sent to an isolation chamber in the basement. Some of their carvings are still on the giant steel door that closed behind them.

The jail was closed in 1981 and is currently used as storage space and houses some county departments, like the microfilm office.

With a deep history, many people ask if the old jail has ghosts.

"None that we've seen," Shaffer said. "We don't work at night. They don't bother us during the day. Let's put it that way."

The jail is open for tours every day. Anyone wanting to take a tour can go to the microfilm office on the first floor. The tours are free.