Boise is Home to one of the Most Haunted Places in America. Stories about the Old Penitentiary have surrounded Idaho for decades and decades and decades. Everything from the riots to the fires to the hauntings have been told in various ways over and over again. The prison originally opened in 1872 and a lot has happened behind the raised towered walls since. 

I was afforded the opportunity to take a behind the scenes tour with Josh Lewis, Roofing and Asbestos Program Manager for the State of Idaho, who has done work on the Old Pen and Stephen Chesnut, the Maintenance and Operations Supervisor of the Old Penitentiary. Stephen has worked exclusively at the old pen for about 5 years and is a wealth of knowledge.

The Old Idaho Penitentiary is well known and often named the most haunted spot in the gem state. After the second riots broke out and a massively destructive fire in the kitchen and dining area in 1973 the prison closed after housing some of the most dangerous criminals in the world for over 100 years. 

During the tour my phone started acting up and didn't want to take photos or videos when we were by the gallows and death row. I got a few but many that I took, or thought I took were not in my collection later. At one point, the gentlemen I was with walked ahead a little and were walking across the outdoor basketball court while I will still making my way out of one of the main cell blocks and below death row and near the gallows. No one else was in the building since this was a private tour for me. As I was getting ready to walk out to follow the guys I was with a major loud clanking bang resounded in the space. It sounded to me like it originated from one of the upper rows of jail cells. As the hair on my arms and back of my neck started to stick up I decided I wasn't going to stick around to find out who it was or where it was coming from.

See the ins and outs of this historic, iconic and haunted piece of Idaho.

The Secrets and Dark Past of The Old Idaho Penitentiary in Boise

The Old Idaho Penitentiary is well known and often named the most haunted spot in the gem state. After the second riots broke out and a massively destructive fire in the kitchen and dining area in 1973 the prison closed after housing some of the most dangerous criminals in the world for over 100 years. 

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