THE OLD JAILHOUSE
BUILDING HISTORY
BLACKSMITH & WAGON SHOP
CA. 1890 - CA. 1895
THE BUILDING WAS CONSTRUCTED CA. 1890 BY WILLIAM J. HILL, THE FIRST BUILDING SUPPLY OPERATOR IN SANFORD
THE BUILDING IS PART OF THE CITY'S ORIGINAL DOWNTOWN COMMERCIAL DISTRICT
THE BUILDING ORIGINALLY HOUSED A BLACKSMITH AND WAGON SHOP. NO RECORDS HAVE BEEN FOUND TO DETERMINE THE NAME OF THE BUSINESS
E.E. BRADY LIVERY FEED & SALES STABLES
CA. 1910 - CA. 1914
FROM CA. 1910 THROUGH CA. 1914, THE BUILDING WAS HOME TO THE "E.E. BRADY LIVERY FEED AND SALES STABLES"
AS AN EARLY CELERY GROWER AND BUSINESS MAN, MR. BRADY WAS A PROMINENT FIGURE IN SANFORD'S HISTORY
"E.E. BRADY LIVERY FEED AND SALES STABLES" OFFERED HORSES, BUGGIES AND MULE TEAMS FOR HIRE (THINK OF THIS AS THE EQUIVALENT OF A MODERN-DAY RENTAL CAR AGENCY
SEMINOLE COUNTY JAIL
CA. 1914 - CA. 1959
SEMINOLE COUNTY WAS CREATED ON APRIL 25, 1913 BY THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE, AND WAS NAMED FOR THE NATIVE SEMINOLE TRIBE, WHO HISTORICALLY LIVED THROUGHOUT THE AREA
IN 1914, THE RECENTLY CREATED SEMINOLE COUNTY ACQUIRED THE BUILDING AND CONVERTED IT FOR USE AS A JAIL. AT THIS TIME, THE PRIOR STOREFRONT WAS ENCLOSED WITH BRICK, CONTAINING A SINGLE ENTRY DOOR WITH TRANSOM, FLANKED BY ARCHED TOP DOUBLE HUNG WINDOWS AND IRON JAIL BARS
THE SEMINOLE COUNTY JAIL FUNCTIONED AT THE LOCATION UNTIL 1959
THE ORIGINAL PRISON CELL BLOCK DOOR AND PRISONER LEDGER BOOK ARE ON DISPLAY AT THE MUSEUM OF SEMINOLE COUNTY HISTORY
CA. 1959 - CA. 2018
THE BUILDING BECAME HOME TO THE SEMINOLE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT AND WAS PURCHASED BY THE SANFORD DRY CLEANERS
THE BUILDING SAT VACANT FOR SEVERAL DECADES AFTER THE DRY CLEANERS VACATED
THE SITE WAS PURCHASED IN 2017 AND HAS BEEN REHABILITATED TO HIGHLIGHT THE BUILDING'S PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE FROM
CA. 1914-1959
SEMINOLE COUNTY
HEALTH DEPARTMENT,
SANFORD DRY CLEANERS,
AND VACANT
ARCHITECTURE
THE BUILDING IS BRICK WITH A DECORATIVE CORNICE THAT HAD BEEN COVERED FOR DECADES
THE ORIGINAL BRICKWORK HAD BEEN COVERED WITH METAL LATH AND STUCCO (DATE UNKNOWN)
PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE REFLECTS THAT THE COVERING OF THE BRICK MAY HAVE BEEN DONE SOMETIME BETWEEN THE MID-1970S TO MID-1980S
THE BUILDING CONTAINS HISTORIC ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS, INCLUDING BRICK ARCHWAYS OVER WINDOWS AND DOORS, WOOD DOUBLE HUNG WINDOWS, JAIL BARS IN WINDOWS, ORIGINAL ENTRY DOOR AND TRANSOM ON THE WEST FAÇADE (FACING PALMETTO AVENUE), ORIGINAL JAIL BARS IN WINDOW OPENINGS ON THE ORIGINAL BUILDING'S EXTERIOR SOUTH WALL (NOW THE WALL IN THE PIAZZA AREA)
A PAINTED ADVERTISING MURAL EXISTS ON THE NORTH WALL. NOTE THAT THIS MURAL HELPS CONFIRM THE AGE OF THE ADJACENT BUILDING (THE OLD FIREHOUSE), TO HAVE BEEN CONSTRUCTED PRIOR TO 1890, AND MORE LIKELY SOMETIME AROUND 1886-1887
BEFORE RENOVATION
CHECK OUT THIS VIDEO SHOWING WHAT THE OLD JAILHOUSE LOOKED LIKE BEFORE RENOVATION
FEATURED ON WESH NEWS THREE YEARS AGO