The second King Street Gaol

Prison

A prison is a place in which people are physically confined and, usually, deprived of a range of personal freedoms. Imprisonment or incarceration is a legal penalty that may be imposed by the state for the commission of a crime...

(also known as the Toronto Jail) was built in 1824 to replace the first King Street Gaol

King Street Gaol (1798)

Built in 1798, the Town of York's first jail was a log structure with 10 cells and a hanging yard. It was located on the south-east corner of King Street and Yonge Street, where the King Edward Hotel stands today...

 in Toronto, Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, then known as the town of York. At that time, the town needed a larger, better constructed jail to replace the original, which was little more than a plain log building with a stockade

Stockade

A stockade is an enclosure of palisades and tall walls made of logs placed side by side vertically with the tops sharpened to provide security.-Stockade as a security fence:...

.

The new two-storey brick

Brick

A brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...

 building, designed by John George Howard

John George Howard

John George Howard, born John Corby, was the City of Toronto, Canada's official surveyor and civil engineer...

, was built two blocks east on the north-east corner of King Street and Toronto Street with a wooden stockade enclosing its gallows

Gallows

A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...

.

After the jail closed, the building was used as an insane asylum

Psychiatric hospital

Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...

, then incorporated into the York Chambers Building. It was eventually demolished in 1957.

Hangings

In 1838, rebel leaders Samuel Lount

Samuel Lount

Samuel Lount was a businessman and political figure in the province of Upper Canada. He participated in the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837....

 and Peter Matthews

Peter Matthews (rebel)

Peter Matthews was a farmer and soldier who participated in the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837.He was born in the Bay of Quinte region of Upper Canada around 1789, the son of United Empire Loyalists. In 1799, the family moved to Pickering Township. Peter served with Isaac Brock as a sergeant in...

 were hanged at the jail for their participation in the Upper Canada Rebellion

Upper Canada Rebellion

The Upper Canada Rebellion was, along with the Lower Canada Rebellion in Lower Canada, a rebellion against the British colonial government in 1837 and 1838. Collectively they are also known as the Rebellions of 1837.-Issues:...

of 1837.