Sligo Jail
Encyclopedia
Sligo Jail or Sligo Prison, founded as Sligo Gaol is a former prison
located in Sligo
, County Sligo, Ireland
which was open from 1823 to 1959.
The jail provided its own hospital wing, surgery
, dispensary
, cookhouse
, furnace
, clothing store and school
.
Male inmates in the prison were forced to undertake "hard labour". This labour included the picking of oakum
, rock breaking and wood chopping. Other forms of male labour included shoemaking
, tailoring, carpentry
, glazing
, and painting
, whilst female inmates were employed to sew, knit and wash clothes.
During the 20th century the jail was self-sufficient and produced its own food, the surplus of which was sold outside the prison at stalls in Sligo.
, County Leitrim
in 1903 who was convicted of murdering his son.
On 26 June 1920, a party of approximately 100 volunteers
from the Irish Republican Army
(IRA) undertook a raid on Sligo jail with the aim of liberating Frank Carty
, the OC of the South Sligo Brigade of the IRA and the newly-elected Sinn Féin
council of Sligo
Town Council.
The IRA members forced open the main gate of the jail and the inner doors. They then forced the nightwatchman
to turn over the keys to the cells and they released Carty who was taken away in a waiting motor car.
Throughout the period of the Second World War a number of German spies were held in Sligo jail. In September 1946, ten German spies were released from the jail; however, eight of the spies chose to remain in Ireland.
passed the Sligo Prison Closing Order, 1956 on 25 April 1956 and the prisoners were transferred to Mountjoy Prison
.
The closure of the jail was welcomed by councillors of Sligo Corporation as they felt it was a symbol of slavery and the conquest of Ireland.
In 1957, the Irish Department of Justice transferred the ownership of the prison to Sligo County Council. The Department, however, retained control of three houses. One of these was retained as a Bridewell in which a prisoner could be held on remand overnight. The last time this Bridewell was used was circa 1959 for a youth remanded on a murder charge. The law was changed to allow a Peace Commissioner to remand a prisoner to Mountjoy, thus the necessity of overnight remand was removed. In 1961, there were plans made to convert the former prison officer
s' quarters into married quarters for the Gardaí. However, this never materialised and the prison is now used as a storage facility for Sligo County Council
with a portion of the site redeveloped as council offices and the headquarters for the Sligo Fire Brigade.
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...
located in Sligo
Sligo
Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...
, County Sligo, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
which was open from 1823 to 1959.
Construction
The jail sits on an 8 acres (32,374.9 m²) site and was designed to hold 200 inmates in a polygon-shaped building, with the Governor's residence situated in the centre of the prison. Construction of the jail began in 1818 and it was opened in 1823 at a cost of £30,000.The jail provided its own hospital wing, surgery
Surgery
Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...
, dispensary
Dispensary
A dispensary is an office in a school, hospital or other organization that dispenses medications and medical supplies. In a traditional dispensary set-up a pharmacist dispenses medication as per prescription or order form....
, cookhouse
Cookhouse
Cookhouse is a small town in Eastern Cape province, South Africa....
, furnace
Furnace
A furnace is a device used for heating. The name derives from Latin fornax, oven.In American English and Canadian English, the term furnace on its own is generally used to describe household heating systems based on a central furnace , and sometimes as a synonym for kiln, a device used in the...
, clothing store and school
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
.
General history
Gas was introduced to the jail in 1879. This allowed the provision of heating via hot water pipes and earned it the nickname of the Cranmore Hotel.Male inmates in the prison were forced to undertake "hard labour". This labour included the picking of oakum
Oakum
Oakum is a preparation of tarred fiber used in shipbuilding, for caulking or packing the joints of timbers in wooden vessels and the deck planking of iron and steel ships, as well as cast iron plumbing applications...
, rock breaking and wood chopping. Other forms of male labour included shoemaking
Shoemaking
Shoemaking is the process of making footwear. Originally, shoes were made one at a time by hand. Traditional handicraft shoemaking has now been largely superseded in volume of shoes produced by industrial mass production of footwear, but not necessarily in quality, attention to detail, or...
, tailoring, carpentry
Carpentry
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
, glazing
Glazing
Glazing, which derives from the Middle English for 'glass', is a part of a wall or window, made of glass. Glazing also describes the work done by a professional "glazier"...
, and painting
Painting
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface . The application of the medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but other objects can be used. In art, the term painting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is...
, whilst female inmates were employed to sew, knit and wash clothes.
During the 20th century the jail was self-sufficient and produced its own food, the surplus of which was sold outside the prison at stalls in Sligo.
Notable events
The final public hanging at Sligo jail occurred on 19 August 1861 when 26 year old Ballymote native Mathew Phibbs, also known as the "Ballymote Slasher", was hung for murdering William and Fanny Callaghan and a servant girl Anne Mooney in January of the same year. The last person to be hanged within the prison was a Mr. Doherty of Carrick-on-ShannonCarrick-on-Shannon
Carrick-on-Shannon is the county town of County Leitrim in Ireland. It is also the smallest main county town in the country . It is situated on a strategic crossing point of the River Shannon and is the largest town in the county. The population of the town was 3,163 in 2006. It is in the barony...
, County Leitrim
County Leitrim
County Leitrim is a county in Ireland. It is located in the West Region and is also part of the province of Connacht. It is named after the village of Leitrim. Leitrim County Council is the local authority for the county...
in 1903 who was convicted of murdering his son.
On 26 June 1920, a party of approximately 100 volunteers
Volunteer (Irish republican)
Volunteer, often abbreviated Vol., is a term used by a number of Irish republican paramilitary organisations to describe their members. Among these have been the various forms of the Irish Republican Army and the Irish National Liberation Army...
from the Irish Republican Army
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
(IRA) undertook a raid on Sligo jail with the aim of liberating Frank Carty
Frank Carty
Francis Joseph Carty was a leader of the IRA in the fight with the Black and Tans in the Irish War of Independence, and a long-serving Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála .- Prison Escapes and Attempts :...
, the OC of the South Sligo Brigade of the IRA and the newly-elected Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin is a left wing, Irish republican political party in Ireland. The name is Irish for "ourselves" or "we ourselves", although it is frequently mistranslated as "ourselves alone". Originating in the Sinn Féin organisation founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffith, it took its current form in 1970...
council of Sligo
Sligo
Sligo is the county town of County Sligo in Ireland. The town is a borough and has a charter and a town mayor. It is sometimes referred to as a city, and sometimes as a town, and is the second largest urban area in Connacht...
Town Council.
The IRA members forced open the main gate of the jail and the inner doors. They then forced the nightwatchman
Nightwatchman
Nightwatchman can refer to one of the following:* Watchman * Nightwatchman , a lower-order batsman who comes in to bat higher up the order than usual near the end of the day's play* The Nightwatchman or Tom Morello, musician...
to turn over the keys to the cells and they released Carty who was taken away in a waiting motor car.
Throughout the period of the Second World War a number of German spies were held in Sligo jail. In September 1946, ten German spies were released from the jail; however, eight of the spies chose to remain in Ireland.
Closure
During the 1950s the number of prisoners detained in the prison was low and dropped to less than 15. The prison subsequently closed on 5 June 1956 after the then Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform James EverettJames Everett
James Everett was an Irish politician. On leaving school Everett became an organiser with County Wicklow Agricultural Union, which later merged with the ITGWU. He was a member of Sinn Féin and served as a justice in the Republican courts for Kildare and Wicklow from 1919. He was first elected to...
passed the Sligo Prison Closing Order, 1956 on 25 April 1956 and the prisoners were transferred to Mountjoy Prison
Mountjoy Prison
Mountjoy Prison , founded as Mountjoy Gaol, nicknamed The Joy, is a medium security prison located in Phibsboro in the centre of Dublin, Ireland. It has the largest prison population in Ireland.The current prison governor is Mr...
.
The closure of the jail was welcomed by councillors of Sligo Corporation as they felt it was a symbol of slavery and the conquest of Ireland.
In 1957, the Irish Department of Justice transferred the ownership of the prison to Sligo County Council. The Department, however, retained control of three houses. One of these was retained as a Bridewell in which a prisoner could be held on remand overnight. The last time this Bridewell was used was circa 1959 for a youth remanded on a murder charge. The law was changed to allow a Peace Commissioner to remand a prisoner to Mountjoy, thus the necessity of overnight remand was removed. In 1961, there were plans made to convert the former prison officer
Prison officer
A prison officer , also referred to as a corrections officer , correctional officer , or detention officer , is a person charged with the responsibility of the supervision, safety and security of prisoners in a prison, jail, or similar form of secure...
s' quarters into married quarters for the Gardaí. However, this never materialised and the prison is now used as a storage facility for Sligo County Council
Sligo County Council
Sligo County Council is the local authority which is responsible for County Sligo in Ireland. The Council is responsible for Housing and Community, Roads and Transportation, Urban planning and Development, Amenity and Culture, and Environment....
with a portion of the site redeveloped as council offices and the headquarters for the Sligo Fire Brigade.
Notable inmates
- Frank CartyFrank CartyFrancis Joseph Carty was a leader of the IRA in the fight with the Black and Tans in the Irish War of Independence, and a long-serving Fianna Fáil Teachta Dála .- Prison Escapes and Attempts :...
- Michael CollinsMichael Collins (Irish leader)Michael "Mick" Collins was an Irish revolutionary leader, Minister for Finance and Teachta Dála for Cork South in the First Dáil of 1919, Director of Intelligence for the IRA, and member of the Irish delegation during the Anglo-Irish Treaty negotiations. Subsequently, he was both Chairman of the...
- Michael DavittMichael DavittMichael Davitt was an Irish republican and nationalist agrarian agitator, a social campaigner, labour leader, journalist, Home Rule constitutional politician and Member of Parliament , who founded the Irish National Land League.- Early years :Michael Davitt was born in Straide, County Mayo,...
- Jack DoyleJack DoyleJack Doyle , known as "The Gorgeous Gael" was at one time or another a contender for the British Boxing Championship, a Hollywood actor and an accomplished tenor.-Early years:...
List of Governors of Sligo Jail
- Mr. J. Beatty 1830 - 1857
- Mr. Walsh 1861 - 1886
- Capt. Loyd 1886 - 1899
- Mr. McArthur 1900 - 1901
- Mr. William J. Reid 1906 - 1924
- Mr. Hipwell 1924 - 1943
- Mr. T. Maher 1943 - 1947
- Mr. J. Kelly 1947 - 1950
- Mr. Moody 1950 - 1950
- Mr. Kelly 1950 - 1954
- Mr. Moody 1954 - 1956