Est. 1901 · Frontier Justice History · Wyoming Heritage · Execution History
Wyoming's territorial government began planning a dedicated penitentiary in 1888, but funding issues delayed completion until December 1901. The finished structure held 104 cells in the original block — no electricity, no running water, and inadequate heating for Wyoming winters — and accepted its first inmates shortly after opening.
The Julien Gallows, installed in the early 20th century, were notable for their mechanism: a prisoner standing on the trap door triggered a water stream that, when full, would open the door. The design meant the prisoner effectively participated in their own execution, and the slow filling of the water vessel meant death came by strangulation rather than the quick drop-break that characterized a properly calibrated hanging. Executions using this mechanism ran from 1912 to 1933. A gas chamber replaced hangings beginning in 1936. Fourteen total executions were carried out at the prison before Wyoming's capital punishment practices moved elsewhere.
Over the prison's 80 years of operation, approximately 13,500 people were incarcerated. Conditions improved incrementally — electricity arrived, heating improved — but the original stone structure retained its imposing character. The prison closed in 1981 when the Wyoming Medium Correctional Institution opened south of Rawlins.
The Wyoming Frontier Prison Museum opened in 1988, and the facility has operated continuously since as a heritage attraction and, more recently, a paranormal tourism destination. Ghost Adventures investigated and aired the resulting episode, establishing the prison in the national paranormal circuit.
Sources
- http://wyomingfrontierprison.org/
- https://www.hauntedrooms.com/wyoming/ghost-hunts/wyoming-frontier-prison
- https://usghostadventures.com/haunted-places/wyoming-frontier-prison/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyoming_State_Penitentiary
- https://www.wyomingfrontierprison.org/
- https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/wyoming-frontier-prison-museum
- https://savingplaces.org/places/wyoming-frontier-prison
- https://www.wyomingcarboncounty.com/things-to-do/museums/wyoming-frontier-prison
- https://ghostadventures.fandom.com/wiki/Wyoming_Frontier_Prison_(episode)
- https://cowboystatedaily.com/2021/10/20/way-back-wednesday-gives-you-a-glimpse-inside-the-history-of-wyomings-historical-frontier-prison/
Lights flickeringTouching/pushingHair pullingPhantom footstepsPhantom voicesDoors opening/closingObject movementDisembodied laughterDisembodied screaming
The paranormal tradition at Wyoming Frontier Prison is dense and specific. Pixley's cell — named for a former inmate — is the building's most consistently active reported location. Candles placed in the cell by investigators and tour operators have been documented across multiple independent sessions cycling through the same sequence: intense flickering, complete extinguishing, then spontaneous relighting. The specificity of the phenomenon across different observers is what distinguishes it from general reports of 'activity.'
The execution chamber generates its own category of report. Visitors describe hearing laughing — not celebratory laughter but something ambiguous — and the sound of a young woman crying. These reports have come from visitors unfamiliar with each other's accounts across multiple years of the facility's operation as a public attraction.
Physical contact reports at the prison are frequent enough that investigators describe them as characteristic of the venue rather than exceptional: shoulders touched, hair pulled, the sensation of a hand on the back. Being addressed by name in empty corridors has been reported by both staff and visitors. Cell doors opening and closing independently, windows rattling with no external wind, and objects — benches, small items — found displaced from their morning positions are consistent enough that staff note them as normal working conditions in the building.
Ghost Adventures' investigation introduced the prison to a national audience and significantly increased visitor numbers. The facility actively incorporates its paranormal reputation into its programming, with Haunted Rooms America now operating the seasonal ghost hunt events.
