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Reported phenomena — as catalogued
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Southwest Louisiana's 1914 Gothic Revival concrete-block lockup — the only jail in Beauregard Parish history to hold an execution — now offers tours and October ghost-hunting weekends.
201 W 1st St, DeRidder, LA 70634
Research updated August 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$
Day tours typically low-cost or free; October ghost-hunting weekends ticketed. Check venue for current pricing.
Access
Limited Access
Three-story concrete block structure; original stairways between floors
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1914 · National Register of Historic Places (1981) · Gothic Revival concrete block construction — rare for Louisiana rural jails · Only execution in Beauregard Parish Jail history: double hanging, March 9, 1928 · Locally known as the Hanging Jail
The Beauregard Parish Jail was constructed in 1914 in DeRidder, Louisiana, the parish seat of Beauregard Parish in the pine timber country of southwestern Louisiana. The building was funded in large part by the parish's timber industry interests and was built from cast concrete block — a relatively modern material at the time — in a Gothic Revival architectural style that gave it an imposing, almost ecclesiastical appearance unusual for a county jail. The three-story structure included cell blocks on the upper floors and administrative offices at ground level.
The building's most consequential event occurred on March 9, 1928, when two men convicted of murder were hanged inside the jail. It was the only execution ever carried out on the premises, but it was enough to fix the building's identity: locals came to call it the Hanging Jail, a name that has persisted into the present. The circumstances of the execution — the names of the two men hanged and the specifics of their convictions — are documented in parish records and in the 64 Parishes coverage of the building's history.
The jail was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981, recognized for its architectural integrity and its role in the parish's judicial and law-enforcement history. The listing noted the building's Gothic Revival design as a rare example of that style applied to a Louisiana rural county jail.
The building has since been repurposed for historic and interpretive use. Regular daytime tours of the cell blocks and execution chamber draw visitors to DeRidder, and the jail has become one of the more accessible dark-tourism destinations in southwestern Louisiana. The NRHP listing has helped secure the building's preservation.
Sources
The Beauregard Parish Jail's paranormal reputation centers on the 1928 execution. Staff and visitors to the jail have described encountering unexplained sounds — footsteps on the upper floors when the building is unoccupied, voices from the cell blocks — and attribute these to the spirits of the two men hanged there. The gallows room on the execution floor draws the most reported activity.
KPLC-TV in Lake Charles covered the jail's ghost-hunting events as part of its annual Halloween-season 'Haunted SWLA' programming. The segment documented organized investigations in the building, with participants using EMF meters and reporting spikes in areas associated with the 1928 execution. Staff members interviewed for the segment described personally observed phenomena, including lights behaving erratically and doors moving without apparent cause.
The October ghost-hunting weekends, which the jail's operators began hosting as a revenue-generating seasonal event, attract paranormal enthusiasts from across southwestern Louisiana and eastern Texas. The combination of a documented death site (the 1928 gallows), original confined spaces, and the building's Gothic exterior has made it one of the more popular investigative destinations in the region.
The jail's NRHP listing and the 64 Parishes coverage ground the paranormal tourism in the building's authenticated history, a balance the operators have maintained in their public programming.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Guided walk through the 1914 Gothic Revival concrete jail, covering its construction by local timber interests, its decades as Beauregard Parish's county lockup, and the 1928 dual execution — the only hanging carried out in the building's history. Tours include the gallows room and original cell blocks.
Seasonal overnight and evening ghost-hunting events held each October. Visitors use EMF meters and other investigative equipment in the cell blocks, the gallows room, and the building's upper floors, where activity is most frequently reported.
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