Exploring The Ohio State Reformatory: Part 1
Updated: Mar 16, 2023
There is just something about an old, historic (possibly haunted) prison that draws me and many other people in. The Ohio State Reformatory is located in Mansfield, Ohio. It provides a museum portion, a Shawshank Redemption portion, and a variety of tours for everyone.
We arrived at the Reformatory at 11 am, when they opened and stayed basically until closing time at 4 pm. Before we got there we bought tickets for the Hollywood Meets History Tour for 2 pm, so getting there right when they opened gave us plenty of time to do our self-guided tour. Watch below to see how our self-guided tour of the museum went.
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So first we hit the museum portion which went over the history of the Reformatory and talked about the inmates that were there. One inmate, in particular, that was of interest is Michael Humphrey who actually ended up as a success story. He came into the Reformatory as a kid when he was convicted of Grand Theft. While he was in the Reformatory he attended high school there and earned his diploma and graduated. He received many care packages from his parents, one of which included a guitar. That guitar led him to start a guitar shop in Canton, Ohio once he got out of OSR. Later in life, Humphrey came back to OSR as a volunteer to share his story and experiences of his time in prison. I think this story of Humphrey shows that the Reformatory really did work at sending these guys out better than they were.
On display throughout the museum portion were many knick-knacks that were used by guards and inmates that were in the prison from years past. Some of the things you can get a look at are makeshift forks/spoons, toothbrushes with razors on the end, and a tattoo gun. You will also see things that the guards would use on their normal work day at the Reformatory like the clock with the key attached (seen below). You will also see things that some of the inmates made in their woodworking shop like chairs and a radio. One item that gets many people coming to the Reformatory is the electric chair coined with the term 'Old Sparky'. The chair came from the Columbus Penitentiary in 2015 and has been on display at OSR ever since.
The second portion of the museum is dedicated to The Shawshank Redemption. Since OSR was one of the filming locations of the movie. Props and rooms are set up for you to see. Props like the 'Brooks was here' piece of wood, the hat that Red (Morgan Freeman) wore in many of the scenes, and the tin that held the letter and money that Red looked for at the end of the movie.
The rooms they have set up in the museum like they were in the movie are the Warden's office or quarters, like his room with the safe and his work desk, the hotel room that Brooks stays at after he is released from prison, and the room where Andy locked the door and played the Opera over the loudspeaker.
If you like learning about prison history or are a fan of Shawshank Redemption then I highly recommend going to OSR. You will find all of this and more when exploring for yourself and taking one of the many tours offered.
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