Washington in Wilkes County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)
Old Wilkes County Jail
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 11, 2022
1. Old Wilkes County Jail Marker
placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Law Enforcement. A significant historical year for this entry is 1891.
Location. 33° 44.288′ N, 82° 44.426′ W. Marker is in Washington, Georgia, in Wilkes County. Marker is at the intersection of West Court Street and North Allison Street, on the right when traveling west on West Court Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 15 W Court St, Washington GA 30673, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Slave Market (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Last Cabinet Meeting of the C.S.A. (about 400 feet away); The Dissolution of the Confederate Government (about 400 feet away); Lindsey Chevrolet Co. (about 400 feet away); First Building (about 400 feet away); Washington-Wilkes Vietnam Monument (about 400 feet away); Woodmen of the World Supreme Sacrifice Monument (about 400 feet away); Washington, Wilkes County, Georgia (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Washington.
Regarding Old Wilkes County Jail. Excerpt from the National Register nomination:
TheOld Wilkes County Jail, built in 1891, is designed in the Romanesque style by the McDonald Brothers Jail Building Company of Louisville, Kentucky, with a heating system that was both innovative and experimental. The building was used as a jail house for less than twenty years, then as a house, and later as an apartment-restaurant.…
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The jail's exterior design was up-to-the-minute stylistically, but the heating system design more closely approached that of an experiment perhaps even being a forerunner of the duct or forced air method of heating. A fire was to be built outside, with the hot air drawn in through a system of moat-like tunnels formed by large limestone blocks. In theory, the warm air was apparently expected to be conducted upwards in the ducts and transmitted to the cells through the porous limestone walls and floor. This system, however, did not function as expected and was a major reason that the jail was used for such a short period.
Also see . . . Old Jail (PDF). National Register nomination for the former jail, which was listed in 1974. (National Archives) (Submitted on June 16, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, June 11, 2022
2. Old Wilkes County Jail Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2022. It was originally submitted on June 16, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 138 times since then and 15 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on June 16, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
