Montgomery County Cultural Foundation/Old Jail Museum

Director, Old Jail Museum Tamara Hemmerlein
Email: oldjail@tctc.com
225 North Washington St.
Crawfordsville IN 47933
Office: (766)362-5222
Fax: (765)362-5222

Montgomery County Cultural Foundation/Old Jail Museum

Montgomery County Rotary Jail

Montgomery County is the home of the only working rotary jail in the United States. The rotary jail was built in 1881 and was an innovation in jail building technology. The two-story circular cellblock is designed to rotate 360 degrees in either a clockwise or counter clockwise direction. A hand crank is used to rotate the approximately 54,000 pound structure.

The rotary jail is located at 225 North Washington Street in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

The Old Jail Museum

The Old Jail Museum is owned and operated by the Montgomery County Cultural Foundation, a 501(c)3 tasked with the preservation of the rotary cellblock and operation of a museum for local art and history. The Cultural Foundation was established in 1975 and is funded through a trust, donations, and memberships.

The Montgomery County Cultural Foundation/Old Jail Museum hosts the annual Labor Day Breakout, a one day festival featuring local entertainment and tours of the museum. A new event is the Summer Art School for fourth, fifth, and sixth graders. Students spend approximately 3 hours a day for one week learning art history and appreciation and creating art of their own.

For more information, contact Tamara Hemmerlein at oldjail@tctc.com or (765) 362-5222.

Volunteer Opportunities

The Old Jail Museum depends heavily on volunteers for its day to day operations and special programs. Our volunteers give tours, greet visitors, plan and mount exhibits, work on landscaping, plan and implement programs and events and the list goes on and on. We have a volunteer opportunity to fit almost anyone. For more information, contact Carol Sweek at oldjail@tctc.com or (765)362-5222.

YOU ARE ALWAYS WELCOME IN JAIL!!!!!!!