Dauphin County Prison Inmate Search

A log structure served as the first Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, jail. Built in 1792, the facility rested on land owned by John Harris, Jr. Born on October 22, 1726, in Dauphin County, Harris founded Harrisburg. The city that bears his name became Pennsylvania’s capital in October 1812.

In 1839, the log jail was demolished. The following year, a construction project ensued on a site located at 223 Walnut Street in Harrisburg. Completed in 1841, this jail carried a final price tag of $40,000. Gothic influences and resemblances to a castle mark the jail’s original construction and its expansion in 1899. In that year, the jail gained two tiers and four towers, or turets. These features gained appeal among corrections and other government officials in the mid to late-19th century for their practical and psychological uses. Guards could readily observe activities around the jail grounds from the high perches. The towers also projected an image of the prison as a fortress, delivering a sense of security to the community and the expectation of deterring would-be criminals.

The architecture notwithstanding, prison conditions have been a long-standing concern in Pennyslvania. This reflects the influence of William Penn and the Quakers in the founding of Pennyslvania. The investigation and monitoring of jail conditions fell in many jurisdictions to investigative grand juries. Such groups examined larger scale corruption and organized crime in addition to potential jail problems.

In 1920, one such investigative grand jury in Dauphin County had examined the prison and recommended new construction. However, the reason did not lie in concerns over jail conditions. The grand jury had in fact deemed the jail to be in good condition. However, the panel advised that Dauphin County relocate the jail from its Walnut Street location to the suburbs of the City. Only after worsening conditions and the escape of a convicted murder did Dauphin County move the jail. By 1952, the jail on Walnut Street had 18 unusable cells and a host of electrical, heating and plumbing problems.

The new County Prison was completed in 1956 and began accepting inmates in 1957. Its location, Swatara Township, resulted from a court-ordered division in 1799 of Lower Paxton Township. The 223 Walnut Street jail was demolished in 1956 and now serves as a parking garage.

Expansions in 1979, 1986, 1991, and 1994 led to more capacity for the housing and care of inmates. The Spring Creek Center, a product of the 1986 addition, was established as a “therapeutic community.” The use of these groups in corrections focuses upon counseling and other therapy to help inmates address substance abuse, violence, and other behavioral and mental issues that facilitate criminal behavior. Under this model, Spring Creek and other communities house participants in dormitories rather than the traditional cells. Spring Creek takes its name from the stream that runs behind the facility. The 1991 expansion brought a Pre-Release Center, through which inmates could access educational, counseling and work-release benefits. Dauphin County discontinued the use of the Center in 1999 as a result of deterioration. Other parts of the Dauphin County Prison assumed pre-release services.