Ohio State Reformatory

Ohio · United States · Prison

The film location for The Shawshank Redemption, and one of the most haunted prisons in the world.

Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield, Ohio opened in 1896 after ten years of construction. The institution originally housed first time offenders, brought here to be given structure and support to put their lives right. By the 1970s, however, it had become a maximum security prison, where inmates spent most of the day in cells as small as two metres by one and a half.

On 31 December 1990 the last prisoners were moved to another institution and the reformatory closed. The building stood empty for several years, but became world famous as the filming location for the Oscar nominated film The Shawshank Redemption in 1993.

Today OSR is counted among the most haunted prisons in the world. Television programmes such as Ghost Brothers and Destination Fear have investigated the site and captured remarkable evidence. The sound of chains falling to the floor, growls, footsteps and church bells have been heard in certain parts of the prison, along with ghostly smells, disembodied voices and orbs of light.

Several inmates described a woman who used to visit the cell blocks and tuck in their blankets at night, though no such woman existed. Some hold that it is the spirit of a nurse who was murdered in the prison many years earlier, still watching over the inmates in the cold, echoing corridors.

Source: English Wikipedia "Ohio State Reformatory" + usghostadventures.com + ohiomagazine.com + mrps.org

FAQ

Where is Ohio State Reformatory located?

Ohio State Reformatory is in Ohio, United States.

Image: Niagara66 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons