Submitted story
This 2021 photo shows the former site of the first jail in Urbana, the northwest corner of East Market and South Locust streets.
Submitted photo
A 2021 photo shows the former site of the first jail in Urbana, located at the NW corner of E. Market and S. Locust streets. This Looking Forward is from the perspective of Simon Kenton, who was the jailer and prisoner here at the same time. We know that the original jail was built as a single-story building sometime before 1808 because the Champaign County Commissioners’ meeting minutes of July 22, 1808, include a proposal to enlarge and add a second story to the existing jail building. The second story provided quarters for the jailer.