The festive season is just around the corner and shoppers across the country are on the hunt for perfect presents for friends and family. Have you thought about checking out the Inveraray Jail shop this Christmas? You’ll find a sackful of great gifts for all ages. To give you a taste of what’s on offer, we...

Damp, stuffy and overcrowded, Inveraray’s Old Prison was not the healthiest of environments. When it opened in 1820 there was no heating (imagine that on wintry Argyll night!), no washroom and no proper sanitation as we would understand it. Because standards of hygiene were so poor, outbreaks of disease were...

In the early days of Inveraray Jail prisoners wore their own clothes. So if you turned up without any shoes, well that’s the way you stayed. But the Prison Reform Act of 1839 stated that on arrival convicts should be issued with a set of prison clothes, and from then on prisoners wore a uniform – a moleskin...

Inveraray is a bustling little town with an old-world charm and loads of things to see and do. It’s a classic example of an eighteenth-century planned town with a truly memorable setting. So after you’ve spent a few hours enjoying Inveraray Jail and all it has to offer, why not explore Inveraray? You’ll...

Peer through the bars into Cell 4 in the Old Prison and you’ll see Elizabeth Henderson. She might be brushing the floor, eating her lunch or sewing herring nets. If you have time, linger for a moment and she’ll tell you her story. It’s a sad tale of poverty. She was thrown out of her family home in...

Australia: land of sun-drenched sand and surfers. Many of us would love to make the trip Down Under to relax on the coast and enjoy the laid-back vibe. But it wasn’t always so. Back in the 18th and 19th centuries, British criminals were sent there for punishment. The first convicts went out in 1787. Over the next...

Saturday 12th May 2013 was not a good day for Inveraray Jail’s Warder. His main job is to secure the jail and make sure that the prisoner’s don’t escape. But at 11am on the dot, 47 prisoners including eight juveniles, broke free and ran for the hills. The crowds clapped and cheered as the pack sprinted...

One of the most popular artefacts on display at Inveraray Jail is the two-wheeled horse-drawn Black Maria carriage built in 1891. Probably the last of its kind in the UK, it’s been beautifully restored and takes pride of place in the courtyard next to the old jail. Our Black Maria has a fascinating – and...

Back in 2011 Inveraray Jail closed its doors to the public for the first time in 21 years as improvements were made to the building. One of the most dramatic transformations was the Prison Shop. It was completely overhauled. The floor-to-ceiling shelves, which for years had covered up the windows, were removed to let the...

Inveraray Jail has certainly aged gracefully. This historic building, which has faced west coast weather and seen hundreds of thousands of people pass through its doors since it was built almost 200 years ago, still stands strong. But, if old buildings like the jail aren’t properly looked after, they can quickly...