Evening journal., 1901-11-15
DEATH KNELL
Or OLD PRISON
Passing Of Historic Old New
Castle Jail
Has SEEN FEARS OF SERVICE
Sheriff Will Not Deliver Prisoners to
NOrkhOuSe Trustees Until Com
PEELED by Court
Has SEEN YEARS OF SERVICE

In few days the Superior Court of
this county will be- called upon 10 sound |
the death kuell of old New Castle county |
jail 10y ordering the removal of all pris- |
oners now confined there. To the new
county workhouse The sheriff of the
county has been requested 20 deliver the |
prisoners 10 the trustees of the workhouse. /
but Will not do so until compelled by a |
process of law or otherwise He was
given ten days grace In which 20 comply |
with the order, aud as the time of grace |
II expires to-day, with no sign of com /
plancc with the request, it is taken for /
granted that hc will not surrender the
criminals under MS charge Hence the |
suit which viii be instituted for their |
custody at the coming term OF court
N WITH the passing Of the old jail there |
goes out Of existence one of Delaware's |
oldest institutions, having figured In the |
history of the State since 1861
when New Castle was known as Fort
I Iasimir. The town was in control of the
Dutch, and historians have almost agreed
that the very land upon which the Jail
now stands was occupied by a prison
during that period in Delaware history,
when the Dutch fought with the Swcdcs
To hold the site now occupied by the
prison as well MS greater part of the
town of New Castle. The town of New
N.t''NfA AH" 'NAANNAAtAN AAif NlAHlliNhA IllNAN
Tor the retention of prisoners in New
castle county for SO many centuries
that u seems like a pity that ii should
be shorn Of ITS main point of interest
N FIRST the town was compelled 20 suffer
1 tb' removal of the County Court House
from ITS limits, and now the jail is taken
from her.
Fort Casimir was New Castle in her
primitive state, and IL contained a Jail
Z Later, when it came 10 be the property
2 of the Swedes. by right of conquest, il
y was called Unity. and still IL had It's
y Jail, and again when it was New Am
ISL stel u had prison which remained until
lr the fort was known as Delaware Town
"A aud finally New Castle
IA During ihe days of isGt when Peter
" Stuyvesant commanded Fort Casmir
against the attacks of Swcdes and In
dians the fort was simply the storehouse
and town proper Religious worship,
there. while another portion was devoted
10 the storage of supplies.
u The fort was taken the last time 10y the
English sometime between 1864 and 1852
and retained by them. The first record Of
.e any court built then was in 1874. Cover
4 nor Andrass on November s, 1876, sent an
y. order from New York 10 Commander
= John Collier 10 build a new Jail in the
\ fort, and to give High Sheriff Edmund
= Cantwcll full charge of the prisoners
~ The commander of Delaware river and
'n bay then was Captain John Collier. and
l. the High Sheriff was Captain Edmund
l. Cantwell.
l- The court was comprised of John Moll
X. Henry Ward, William Tom and Garret
m Otto. The clerk Of the court was
"a. Ephriam Herman. Persons committing
(, crimes i'm any of the surrounding country
III even from as far as Wyand. Pa. were
. confined TO the jail in the fort
ISL I'm Inmn n ~ the IfUffrf IIUfIar aud
so Jail were vested in the trustees of the
& Market House Square. They were
Thomas Mexican. George Read, John
is Mckinley. Alexander Porter. George
Monroe. John Evans and David Thomp
son. These appointments descended 20
the sons aud relatives of the first ap-
pointed until there was no direct descend
ant Then custodians were named by
N, the General Assembly.
Nj I'm i712 there also was a wOrkhOusc in
" connection with the jail, which was sit
uaied about where the present inclosure
now is
r In 1889 the FIRST act providing for the
$, retention of Unite States prisoners
T. in New Castle Jail was passed. Besides
is lpavinC for the support of the prisoners,
the Government paid fifty cents for each
n one kept. toward the running expenses
h of the Jail
We on January % 1907. the Levy Court
g. trustees. 10 meet four times o wear, and
rs look after the welfare of the institu.
tion and IT'S inmates These trustees
he were paid $500 q day for each day they
al met
In 1857 the old Jail was torn away and
the present structure was built A slat
ul over the entrance of the prison contains
-, this record of the event. Built A. y
n I1S57 Architect. Samuel Sloan Build
ers Michael $. Carman, Richard j. Dob
bins Building Committee-Johu Smith
William $. Clarke. Thomas Scott, El
Todd. J. A. b. Smith. Superintendent
lp Thomas NJ. Ogle."
N In 1879 the General Assembly passe,
the act which removed the Court Hous,
from New Castle to Wilmington. aud fol
ls lowing in the course of events the deatl
be sentence was passed upon the prison 10y
in the act providing for the new workhouse
nd passed at Dover ON lay IS. 1899.
mt Following are the nance of the sher
ed ifs who have presided over the prisol
on John French. 1908: Richard Clark
he l11i3. Arthur Houston 1717. Rowland
Fuzgerald. lis; William Battle, 1925
lal William Read 1929 Henry Newton
MT l1780. n Goodgin. 1852. Gideon Griffith
ed l74s: John Nandyke 1885, George Non
lld roe. 1853: William Griffith, 175is T. PIC
Kinley. 175s. John Dun, 1851, Ihouia
We Duff 1862: John Thompson, 1913, Johl
ic- CLARK. 1876 Samuel Smith, 1il9; Josepl
Shdham. 17s2: Thomas kean, 1is5
John Stockton iiSS: ID. j. Adams. 1871
William Stidham, 1874; Maxwell Bines
1877: Joseph Israel. 1900: r. G. Dale
in 1893: Francis llanghey, 1906 ]. Perkins
ed 1909: William Moore, 1872; franci
he Haughey. 1915: John Moody. 1878; Davi,
lat lC Wilson. 1921 Peter Il. Delaney. 1874
NJ William Herdman, 1897: Marcus Il
ub Capelle. 1890; Jnmes Gardiner, 1888
he Peter Nandever 1894, Nathaniel Wolfe
Is l1sse Elhu Jefferson 1855. W. y
~ Moore 1870 .s.ssn Elfs 81 lsHel