Ohio State Reformatory


The Ohio State Reformatory, also known as the Mansfield Reformatory, is a historic prison located in Mansfield, Ohio in the United States. It was built between 1886 and 1910 and remained in operation until 1990, when a United States Federal Court ruling ordered the facility to be closed. While this facility was used in a number of films, TV shows and music videos, it was made famous by the film The Shawshank Redemption when it was used for the majority of the movie.
The Ohio State Reformatory is currently open to tourists 4 days a week from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. from April 1 to September 2. They also have winter tours on weekends from February 2 to March 31 and holiday tours on weekends from November 23 to December 23.

History

The history of the Ohio State Reformatory began in 1861: the field where the reformatory would be built was used as a training camp for Civil War soldiers. The camp's name had significant meaning to Ohio as it was named Camp Mordecai Bartley in honor of the Mansfield man who served as Ohio governor in the 1840s.
In 1867, Mansfield was promoted as a candidate for the placement of the new Intermediate Penitentiary. The city raised $10,000 to purchase 30 acres of land for the prison, and the state acquired 150 acres of adjoining land for $20,000; the cost of the facility was $1,326,769. The Intermediate was intended as just that, a halfway point between the Boys Industrial School in Lancaster and the State Penitentiary in Columbus which was intended to house young first-time offenders. Construction began in 1886 and remained under construction until 1910 due to funding problems which caused construction delays.
The original architect for the design was Levi T. Scofield from Cleveland, who used three architectural styles; Victorian Gothic, Richardsonian Romanesque and Queen Anne. Scofield designed the reformatory with these unique styles to help encourage inmates to become reborn back into their spiritual lives. The creation and construction of the entire building was entrusted to well-known architect F.F. Schnitzer, whose name also appears on the cornerstone, and is recorded as Superintendent and Supervising Architect on documents found there. In 1891 the name was changed from Intermediate Penitentiary to Ohio State Reformatory.
On September 15, 1896 the reformatory opened its doors to its first 150 offenders. These prisoners were brought by train from Columbus and put immediately to work on the prison sewer system and the 25-foot stone wall surrounding the complex. Schnitzer was presented with a silver double inkwell by the governor of the state in a lavish ceremony to thank him for his services. The exterior of the building, which is built from brick and concrete, is designed in the Romanesque style giving the frontage a castle-like appearance.

Closure

The Reformatory remained in full operation until December 1990 when it was closed via federal court order. As the result of a prisoners' class action suit citing overcrowding and inhumane conditions, District Judge Frank J. Battisti of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio ordered the prison closed by the end of December 1986. This order was known as the Boyd Consent Decree. The closing date was moved to 1990 due to delays in constructing the replacement facility, the Mansfield Correctional Institution, which stands to the west of the old prison.
Most of the grounds and support buildings, including the outer wall, have been demolished since the closing. In 1995, the Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society was formed. They have turned the prison into a museum and conduct tours to help fund grounds rehabilitation projects and currently work to stabilize the buildings against further deterioration.
The East Cell Block remains the largest free-standing steel cell block in the world at six tiers high. From 1935 until 1959 Arthur Lewis Glattke was the Superintendent.
Initially a political appointment following Glattke's work on the Martin Davey campaign, by all accounts Glattke was respected by professionals and inmates alike. He implemented many reforms such as piped-in radio music in the cell blocks. Glattke's wife, Helen Bauer Glattke, died of pneumonia three days following an accident in November 1950 where a handgun discharged when she was reaching into a jewelry box in the family's quarters. Glattke died following a heart attack suffered in his office on February 10, 1959. Over 200 people died at the OSR, including two guards who were killed during escape attempts.

Restoration and tours

The Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society is currently working to restore the facility to its original state. Restorations to date include the removal of debris, replacement of roofing, complete restoration of the Warden's quarters, as well as the complete restoration of the central guard room between the East and West Cell Blocks.
The restorations are being funded through donations and tour fees. The windows of the south side east cell block have been replaced, and all of the original stained glass windows that were in the building are planned to be replaced. Throughout the Halloween season, the building hosts a haunted house through .
The Ohio State Reformatory offers three types of guided tours: History Meets Hollywood which summarizes the history and movie history, Beyond the Bars which focuses more on the history and access to areas off the tour-route, and the Inmate tour which is guided by a former inmate at The Ohio State Reformatory.
The Ohio State Reformatory offers ghost tours as well as the normal daytime tours. They offer public ghost hunts for casual ghost hunters, private ghost hunts for more experienced ghost hunters, ghost walks for children 13 years and up, ghost hunt classes for children 13 years and up, and special ghost hunt events hosted by famous ghost hunters, celebrities, or historians.

Events

The Ohio State Reformatory currently hosts several different events throughout the year, one of the most popular being the INKcarceration Music & Tattoo Festival, which is a 3-day rock band show in mid-July. A few of the other events include The Shawshank Hustle a 7k running race that goes past 5 film locations of The Shawshank Redemption, Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre which is written and acted out by the Mansfield Playhouse, and the Pour One Nine Beerfest which features over 25 brews and wines as well as live artists and food.

Films and television

The Ohio State Reformatory facility has been used as a location for many film and television productions, and is best known for its appearance as Shawshank State Prison in the 1994 film The Shawshank Redemption.
The Reformatory was the setting for the 2017 Ink in the Clink rock festival that had Three Days Grace, 10 Years, and Kentucky's Black Stone Cherry. It was the setting for the 2018 Inkcarceration rock festival with Chicago's Rise Against, A Day to Remember, Toronto's Our Lady Peace, Bush, and Fuel.