TLDR
A Romanesque Revival prison built between 1886 and 1910, housing over 150,000 inmates before a federal court forced it to close in 1990 due to overcrowding and inhumane conditions. Most people know it as the filming location for The Shawshank Redemption.
The Full Story
More than 200 people died within these walls, including two guards, and their spirits reportedly still roam the cellblocks. A guard killed in Solitary Confinement in 1932 still makes his rounds, jabbing visitors with his nightstick and pushing guests. Dark figures are frequently seen in the six-tier East Cell Block, the largest freestanding steel cell block in the world. Visitors experience footsteps, voices from empty cells, whispers, and physical contact including hair pulling and scratching. The warden's wife was accidentally killed in her quarters when a handgun discharged from a jewelry box shelf, and her spirit reportedly lingers in the administrative wing. The prison offers ghost hunts, paranormal investigation classes, and the terrifying Blood Prison haunted attraction each Halloween season.
Visiting
Ohio State Reformatory is located at 100 Reformatory Road, Mansfield, Ohio.