St. Augustine Old Jail: Guided Tour & Execution History

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Free cancellationExcellent quality

1/9

Duration30m

LanguagesEN

Mobile ticketAccepted

Inside the Cells Where St. Augustine Kept Its Criminals

You walk through the cells, gallows, and sheriff's living quarters with a jailer guide who explains St. Augustine's criminal past and the methods used to keep order. The tour includes the maximum security block and a look at how the sheriff's family lived directly above the inmates. Admission is included, children under 5 are free, and the lower floor is wheelchair accessible.

30m

Step-by-step itinerary

Tour Old Jail Museum in St. Augustine

Arrive at Old Jail Museum
Join guided tour by jailers
Explore prisoner cells and gallows
See maximum security area
Visit sheriff’s quarters upstairs
Learn about Sheriff Perry and history
View weapons collection

The Experience

The Old Jail on San Marco Avenue doesn't announce itself loudly — you walk in and the temperature drops. A jailer in period dress meets you at the entrance and the first thing they show you isn't the cells. It's the gallows. Two people were hanged here for murder, including Sim Jackson in 1908, and the casual way the guide points to the wooden structure makes it real in a way a plaque never would. For nearly 60 years until 1953, this building held petty thieves and hardened criminals in the same rooms you're about to walk through.

The tour moves through the cell blocks — separate areas for men and women, and a maximum security section for the most dangerous inmates. What catches most people off guard is the sheriff's quarters upstairs, where Sheriff Perry's family lived directly above the prisoners. Perry was 6'6" and weighed 300 pounds, and the jailer explains how his reputation alone kept order, though his methods were brutal: he rented inmates out to local farmers through a leasing system that was legal at the time but reads as shocking now. You see the kitchen where Perry's wife prepared meals for the prisoners, the children's rooms, the everyday life of a man who was both feared and respected in the community. The contrast between the family's comfort and the cells below is the point the guide doesn't need to make.

The St. Augustine Old Jail Museum is wheelchair accessible on the lower floor, and kids under 5 get in free. There's free parking nearby and the tour operates first-come, first-served — no reservations needed. Most visits run about an hour, though you can move through faster if the crowd is light. Public transportation options are available if you're staying downtown, and the museum sits in the Uptown District, walkable from the historic core if you have the time.

What’s included

Your admission includes a guided tour led by a jailer through the cell blocks, maximum security area, gallows, and the sheriff's living quarters upstairs.
You'll learn about the jail's 60-year history, the inmates and crimes, and Sheriff Perry's controversial methods.
Free parking is available nearby.

Good to know

Easy physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Historic Tours Of America

Is this one for you?Good for history buffs and anyone curious about how St. Augustine enforced law in the late 1800s and early 1900s — the jailer guide brings the details to life in a way that makes the cells feel occupied, even now.