In 1684, a county jail was built in Salem near the corner of County Street and Prison Lane, present-day Federal and St. Peter streets. The jail became known for its use during the Salem Witch Trials in 1692 and was ultimately abandoned in 1813 when a new, larger jail was constructed on an adjacent lot on St. Peter Street. The plot of the old jail was purchased in 1863 by Abner Cheney Goodall, who built a home there, reusing some of the timbers from the previous jail building.
In recognition of the Massachusetts Bay Colony Tercentenary in 1930, a historic marker was placed outside of the home to mark the old jail site and in 1935, Goodall’s grandson, Alfred and his wife began offering tours. The house became known as the “The Old Witch Jail and Dungeon” where visitors could view artifacts of the jail such as unpaid bills of the accused and pieces of clothing belonging to prisoners. The home also held a library and antiques collected by the family.
The New England Telephone Company razed the building at 4 Federal Street in 1956 to construct their new headquarters. During demolition, remnants of the jail were discovered below the building. A bronze plaque now adorns the Federal Street location and artifacts such as first period timbers can be viewed at the modern Witch Dungeon Museum on nearby Lynde Street. Additional timbers from the jail are housed by the Salem Witch Museum and the Peabody Essex Museum.
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Digitized Archives
Witch Jail and Dungeon
Salem Jail
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