The old Essex County Jail is located in the University Heights section of

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

, Essex County,

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, United States. The jail is Essex County's oldest public building and a national landmark of value for its architectural and social history. The complex consists of about 20 structures of various size, age, and function ranging in date from the 1830s to 1930s. Collectively, they represent the evolution of American prison history over 100 years. For the quality of its architecture, its social history, and its links to the

1967 Newark Riots The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...

, this jail was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on September 3, 1991. The site has been abandoned since 1971 and remains property of the City of Newark.

Geography

The jail was originally located at the city's edge in a neighborhood of farms and factories, adjacent to the recently completed

Morris Canal The Morris Canal (1829–1924) was a common carrier anthracite coal canal across northern New Jersey that connected the two industrial canals at Easton, Pennsylvania across the Delaware River from its western terminus at Phillipsburg, New Jers ...

. The grounds are now located adjacent to the Norfolk Street station of the

Newark Light Rail The Newark Light Rail (NLR) is a light rail system serving Newark, New Jersey and surrounding areas, operated by New Jersey Transit Bus Operations. The service consists of two segments, the original Newark City Subway (NCS), and the extension t ...

, which was built along the route of the former canal bed in the 1930s. Due to the urban environment and geography, the jail's various buildings are tightly crowded over 1.5 acres - originally with few green spaces between for inmate recreation.

History

English architect and social reformer

John Haviland John Haviland (15 December 1792 – 28 March 1852) was an English-born American architect who was a major figure in American Neo-Classical architecture, and one of the most notable architects working from Philadelphia in the 19th century. Bio ...

designed and built the jail in 1837 at the corner of Newark and New Streets. Haviland was an established prison architect at the time who was most notable for

Eastern State Penitentiary The Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP) is a former American prison in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located at 2027 Fairmount Avenue between Corinthian Avenue and North 22nd Street in the Fairmount section of the city, and was operational from ...

, among other prison designs that emphasized prisoner reform over brutal punishment. The Morris Canal ran adjacent to the jail and formed the back of the property line. When the building was first built it was known as the ''Newark Street Jail''. This jail replaced an earlier structure located at the corner of Broad and Walnut Streets at the present site of the Grace Episcopal Church. Haviland's jail consisted of a two-story square building built of brick and local brownstone in the Greek Revival style. Behind this there rose a three story sandstone structure - measuring roughly 75 by 100 feet - with tiers of cells running down the center. This cell block functioned as a temporary holding facility while inmates awaited trial and conviction. After conviction, inmates moved to the state prison in Caldwell, built 1872 and now demolished. In 1890, and again in 1893, 1903, and 1907, Haviland's original building was expanded with multiple additions increasing the number of prison cells upwards of 300. However, actual inmates numbers were often closer to 500 due to severe overcrowding during events like the 1967 Newark Riots. The building was also updated to include running water and toilet facilities in each cell. The building served as Essex County's main jail until 1971 when a new jail was built. In 1991, scenes for the film

Malcolm X Malcolm X (born Malcolm Little, later Malik el-Shabazz; May 19, 1925 – February 21, 1965) was an American Muslim minister and human rights activist who was a prominent figure during the civil rights movement. A spokesman for the Nation of Is ...

were shot at the jail. In 2003, a fire devastated the Women's Wing built 1895, which is now in rubble. The property is currently unsecured, open to trespassers and urban explorers, and frequently featured in ruins photography.

Current Site Conditions

Essex County Jail perimeter wall at Lock Street subway station Newark

The building was severely damaged by fire in 2003. A new science park was planned for the site, but plans never left the drawing board. The design called for demolishing the entire structure, but the city's landmarks committee, which seeks to have the jail preserved, rejected the plan in 2010. The jail is rapidly decaying and many sections have already fallen down. In particular, The Warden's House, which dates from 1837, has partially collapsed due to lack of maintenance. Pending more detailed surveys, the other sections need to be stabilized before the structure is rehabilitated. In July 2017,

Rutgers Law School Rutgers Law School is the law school of Rutgers University, with classrooms in Newark and Camden, New Jersey. It is the largest public law school and the 10th largest law school, overall, in the United States. Each class in the three-year J.D. pr ...

applied to de-register the facility from the National Register of Historic Places and the New Jersey Register of Historic Places; de-registering the site would allow demolition to go forward with no legal requirements for a feasibility study of possible reuses. In spring 2018, a team of graduate students at Columbia University

GSAPP Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP) is the architecture school of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. It is regarded as an important and highly prestigious architecture school.

researched the architectural and social history of this structure and set forth eleven proposals for the jail's reuse. This research became the subject of a spring 2019 design studio and exhibit in the Newark's Hahne's Building with funding from the Hanini Group, NJ Appleseed, and Newark Landmarks. This represents a first concrete step toward this structure's constructive reuse.

References

External links

*
Photo documentation and history of the abandoned jailPictures of the old Essex County Jail
{{National Register of Historic Places Government buildings completed in 1837 Infrastructure completed in 1837 Buildings and structures in Newark, New Jersey Historic American Buildings Survey in New Jersey National Register of Historic Places in Newark, New Jersey Stone houses in New Jersey Defunct prisons in New Jersey New Jersey Register of Historic Places County government buildings in New Jersey John Haviland buildings 1837 establishments in New Jersey

Geography

History

Current Site Conditions

See also

Related Jails

References

External links