This squared limestone block building likely was constructed in the 1870’s or 80’s. The upper floor served as the City Hall, with a raised front entrance and tall plastered ceiling. The lower floor was the City Jail with its separate front and side entrances and two iron-barred jail cells. The front porch has been altered but otherwise, the broadside-facing structure is architecturally intact including the six over six windows and their Federal style lintel caps.
Old-timers claim there were more than two jail cells, but this is not structurally indicated. Most inmates were vagrants or drunks from the train, who disturbed neighbors with their loud complaints from the jail. One elderly gentleman remembered the police arresting some young miscreants (he was one of them) for disobeying the curfew law, and locking them up for a few hours to persuade them to be law-abiding. The building is now a house, but the exterior is largely unchanged from the days when it was a jail; iron bars still remain on the basement windows. The prison cells in the basement are now a guest room and storage room; the jail entry area is a study and bookshelves and a fireplace. The main floor has a kitchenette, dining area, and a living room.(*)
Located at 38 E Center St in Ephraim, Utah.
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