The Hexham Old Gaol is in the town of

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden nearby, and close to Hadrian's Wall. Hexham was the administra ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

. It is reputed to be the oldest purpose-built

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

. The gaol was built under the order of Margot and

William Melton William Melton (died 5 April 1340) was the 43rd Archbishop of York (1317–1340). Life Melton was the son of Nicholas of Melton, and the brother of Henry de Melton, and John Melton. He was born in Melton in the parish of Welton, about ...

, the

Archbishop of York The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers ...

, in 1330–33. It held prisoners from Hexhamshire and, in the 16th century, also from the English Middle March, before their trial in the Moothall Court Room nearby. The gaol currently houses a museum, covering: archaeology, archives, costume and textiles, law and order, music, photography, social history, weapons and war. The collections include 15th and 16th century arms and armour, and objects of local historical interest. The Border Library holds the Butler Collection, books, recordings and music relating to the culture of

the Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothian an ...

References

External links

Hexham Old Gaol
- official site

at Tynedale Learning Links

Information
from the

24 Hour Museum Culture24, originally the 24 Hour Museum, is a British charity which publishes websites, ''Culture24'', ''Museum Crush'' and ''Show Me'', about visual culture and heritage in the United Kingdom, as well as supplying data and support services to ...

Review
Prisons in Northumberland Local museums in Northumberland 1330s establishments in England Prison museums in the United Kingdom Defunct prisons in England Hexham {{UK-prison-stub