# The Old Newark County Jail



## lizm73 (Jun 25, 2011)

My third UrbEx in New Jersey was the Old Newark County Jail A.KA. The Essex County Jail. Built in 1837 it’s got to be the oldest explore I have seen, and is listed as the oldest building in the county! 

This Historic correctional facility has been abandoned since the 1970's. It has been home to drug dealers, derelicts and squatters ever since.
Unlike a lot of abandoned places this was in the centre of town, we didn’t stay in there long! 

The original building was designed by architect John Haviland and was built in 1837 at the corner of Newark and New Streets. The Morris Canal ran adjacent to the jail and formed the back of the property line. When the building was first built it was known as the Newark Street Jail. The jail was built to replace an earlier structure that was located at the corner of Broad and Walnut Streets and is the present site of the Grace Episcopal Church. The jail consisted of a two story square building built of brick and local brownstone. In 1890, the original building was expanded with multiple additions increasing the number of prison cells up to 300. The building was also updated to include running water and toilet facilities in each cell. The building served as Essex County's main jail until 1970 when a new jail was built. In 2001, a fire caused severe damage, collapsing walls.


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## Neosea (Jun 25, 2011)

It's nice to see something from Newark. Good work


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## manof2worlds (Jun 25, 2011)

Great thread - love stuff like this. More?


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## Janey68 (Jun 28, 2011)

I like stuff like this too, they are great pics.


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## night crawler (Jun 28, 2011)

Make an interesting building to convert to flats. Nice one


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## Saz123 (Aug 15, 2011)

love this, looks like a pretty gripping place!!


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