Jackson Prison
Railroads running through Jackson, MI in the mid-1850s.
Originally constructed as Michigan’s first state prison, and the world’s largest walled prison, Jackson Prison (also referred to as the State Penitentiary of Southern Michigan (SPSM)) contributed to centuries of economic growth and political turmoil for Jackson County and the state of Michigan. According to Experience Jackson tourism website, “Jackson [city] owes almost 200 years’ worth of growth and success to something many people wouldn’t expect: prisons.” Throughout the 19th century, burgeoning penitentiaries ignited economic booms in the small towns that housed them. The same went for Jackson, which became the largest railroad stop between Chicago and Detroit after opening its first state prison in 1839.
Jackson Prison in the late 19th century.
A wooden fort on the northside of downtown Jackson, the first prison housed 35 inmates within its makeshift walls. The choice of Jackson as the site of the penitentiary resulted from the lobbying of several prominent Jackson businessmen who were seeking a cheap source of labor for their factories. The Jackson Wagon Company actually constructed a factory on the prison grounds, making it even more efficient to escort inmates to and from work. These prisoners were paid pennies a day and worked under a quota system in which they were severely punished if they did not meet high thresholds of production. Other factories that hired prison labor produced goods like auto parts, harness and tack, binder twine, tombstones, cigars, farm equipment, and locomotive boilers.
In 1840 after the prison population expanded to 85 inmates – 10 prisoners escaping and terrorizing Jackson for 2 years at one point – the state replaced the facility’s wooden walls with brick, mortar, and iron edifice. Most notably, the new Jackson prison featured a 25-foot stone wall surrounding the entire prison. With a population of more than 2,000 inmates by 1882, the Jackson Prison was named the largest walled prison in the world. The facility was closed in 1920 when it became evident from the issue of overcrowding that there was a need for a larger prison.
Inmate wages at Michigan State Industries (located in Jackson Prison)
At this point, the Michigan legislature authorized plans for a new facility 3 miles north of the “old prison”, named the State Prison of Southern Michigan (SPSM). SPSM had a capacity of 5,700 inmates, making Jackson the home to the largest walled prison for the second time. The State of Michigan began operating its own factories due to objections by labor unions that inmates were taking jobs away from non-incarcerated people. The intent behind this shift was also to make SPSM completely self-supporting, a self-sustaining ecosystem, by having inmates work in the concrete block and brick factories to produce material for prison expansion projects; ironically forcing inmates to manufacture the same materials used to confine and keep them incarcerated.
Sources:
"Experience Jackson's Walking Tours." Experience Jackson. Accessed December 21, 2022. https://www.experiencejackson.com/blog/experience-jacksons-walking-tours.
Ostrander, Steve. "Prison Labor in Michigan." Michiganology. Accessed December 21, 2022. https://michiganology.org/stories/prison-labor-in-michigan/.