This two-storied, common-bond brick building was constructed c. 1838 by Captain Abraham Spencer, the same person who built the nearby Clerk’s Office. The front doorway has been shifted. The windows have granite sills and originally had iron bars which are now removed.

Two earlier wooden jails had been erected at the same location, the first c. 1760 and the second c. 1764, but were burned to the ground by escaping prisoners. Archaeological investigations have revealed that the first floor originally had a central cell block with four cells surrounded by a ditch that was covered by a wooden walkway. The open staircase and floors are replacements and the first-floor rooms are now whitewashed. The second floor was used at various times as living quarters for the jailer, public armory for munitions, and general storage for the county. This 1835 jail was used by the county until 1915 when a new jail was erected behind the 1909 courthouse. Source: Halifax Colonial Jails Historical Marker