Courthouse Steps

The story

In the early 1800s the jail was built in the neighbouring community of Kingston and served as the county jail until the 1860s. At that time, with the arrival of the railway, Hampton became the county capital and the seat of justice. A new Court House was built (1871) in Hampton but the thrifty community decided against building a new jail – they instead moved the old one! The building was dismantled in Kingston and the huge granite stones were pulled upriver by teams of oxen on the ice during the winter. The jail was then reassembled on this site where it was used as a correctional facility until 1971.

Today, the building is shared by the Kings County Museum, which uses the prisoner’s cells as a display space to tell the story of what purpose the building used to serve. Court House Steps pattern was chosen as this block lays on the building directly beside the former Kings County Courthouse.

Name of sponsor of Barn Quilt : Old Kings County Jail (Gaol)

Location

Courthouse Steps

See the barns on google maps