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Reported phenomena, as catalogued
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1889 Richardsonian Romanesque jail where Carl Etherington was lynched in 1910, 22 deaths documented — Ghost Adventures filmed full apparitions here in 2014
50 W Locust St, Newark, OH 43055
Research updated September 2026
Age
18+ for overnight ghost hunts
Cost
$$
Ghost hunt tickets typically $45–$75 per person; check hauntedrooms.com and venue site for current pricing
Access
Limited Access
Historic multi-story stone jail; stairs throughout; uneven surfaces in cell blocks
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1889 · J.W. Yost Richardsonian Romanesque Architecture · 1910 Mob Lynching of Carl Etherington — Anti-Saloon League Detective · 22 Documented Deaths · National Press Coverage of Etherington Lynching · Licking County Ohio Correctional History
The Licking County Jail was designed in 1889 by J.W. Yost, a prominent Ohio architect who had already completed the Ohio Statehouse annex and several institutional buildings across the state. The structure is built of pink Millersburg sandstone in Richardsonian Romanesque style — the rounded arches, heavy masonry, and tower forms characteristic of Henry Hobson Richardson's influence on American public building in the 1880s and 1890s. It held its first prisoners upon completion and served as the county's primary lockup for nearly a hundred years, closing in 1987.
Twenty-two deaths were documented within the jail during its operating life. The most widely known occurred not in a cell but at the end of a rope hung from a telephone pole outside the building's walls. Carl Etherington was a 17-year-old detective working for the Anti-Saloon League — a Prohibition-era organization that hired agents to document alcohol law violations. On the night of November 8, 1910, a crowd estimated at 500 people stormed the jail, overpowered the guards, and removed Etherington. They hanged him from a nearby telephone pole. The event was covered by newspapers across the country and prompted calls for reform of the Ohio criminal justice system. The crowd was never charged. Etherington was buried in Newark.
The jail ran a commercial haunted attraction called 'Jail of Terror' during Halloween seasons after its closure. This programming eventually evolved into the overnight paranormal investigation events that continue to draw bookings. The Ghost Adventures television crew filmed an episode here on July 12, 2014, which added the jail to a broader national circuit of documented investigation locations.
Sources
The Licking County Jail's paranormal documentation is anchored by the July 12, 2014 Ghost Adventures episode, which brought a national television crew to the site and produced accounts of full-form apparitions and electronic voice phenomena that the production team attributed to the building's documented deaths.
Investigators and tour participants most frequently associate reported activity with Carl Etherington, the 17-year-old Anti-Saloon League detective who was dragged from the jail and hanged outside in 1910. The accounts describe a figure attempting to reach exits, audible footsteps on cell block stairs, and EVP recordings that investigators have interpreted as Etherington's voice. Whether the reported phenomena are genuinely tied to Etherington's death — which occurred outside the building, not within it — is a question the reports don't resolve.
More general reports from overnight investigation participants include cold spots in the upper cell blocks, shadow figures seen at the ends of corridors, and unexplained sounds in the area of the jail's original booking room. The building closed in 1987, and the decades of disuse combined with the intact cell block architecture have made it a consistent draw for paranormal tourism operators.
Notable Entities
Media Appearances
Where this legend is told
Bookable overnight ghost hunts and investigation events inside the closed 1889 jail. Ghost Adventures filmed here on July 12, 2014, capturing reported full apparitions, EVP recordings, and documented investigator accounts of Carl Etherington's presence attempting to escape — echoing the 1910 lynching. Equipment provided or BYOP.
The jail ran a commercial 'Jail of Terror' haunted attraction during Halloween seasons after closing in 1987. Check venue for current seasonal programming.
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Ione, CA
The Preston School of Industry in Ione, California was established by the State Legislature as a reform institution for juvenile offenders — emphasizing rehabilitation over imprisonment. The cornerstone was laid in December 1890, and the Romanesque Revival building, designed in the Richardsonian style, was constructed between 1890 and 1894 and opened in June 1894. The school operated until 1960, when new facilities were completed on the same property. Notable alumni include Merle Haggard, Rory Calhoun, and author Eddie Bunker.
Petros, TN
Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary opened in 1896 in the aftermath of Tennessee's Coal Creek War, built in part by the convicts who would subsequently mine coal on the same grounds. The prison operated for 113 years before closing in 2009, housing notable inmates including James Earl Ray — the convicted assassin of Martin Luther King Jr. — who made a 1977 escape using a pipe ladder and was recaptured after 54 hours.
Mansfield, OH
The Ohio State Reformatory in Mansfield was built between 1886 and 1910 on 40 acres, designed by architect Levi T. Scofield in a blend of Victorian Gothic, Richardsonian Romanesque, and Queen Anne styles intended to encourage spiritual reform in young offenders. The facility opened September 15, 1896, and operated until 1990 when a federal court ordered its closure due to overcrowding and inhumane conditions. Over 200 people died during its operation. The Mansfield Reformatory Preservation Society has operated it as a museum since 1995.