Derby Gaol

Today, the term usually refers to one of two small ‘tourist attractions', the gaol which stood on Friar Gate from 1756 to 1846 and the cells of which still exist and are open to the public.

In 1652 the Cornmarket Gaol (no longer extant) was the site of the imprisonment of George Fox on charges of blasphemy.

It has been alleged that Judge Bennett of Derby first used the term Quaker to describe the movement, as they bid him to 'quake for fear of the Lord', but the phrase had already been used in the context of other religious groups so the etymology is dubious.

The Friar Gate Gaol was site of many hangings, and the small attraction today displays reproduction newspaper accounts of the executions on the walls, a replica of a gallows which stood in front of the building can be located in the small garden of the gaol.

Following demolition, the site served as a Derby Greyhound Stadium, and today contains offices, though the historical facade still remains.