Clearing of the land began in Goderich, Ontario in 1839 and the jail was constructed between 1839 and 1842 using stone from the Maitland River Valley and from Michigan.

An exterior wall of the jail was the location of the last public execution that occurred in Canada, when on December 7, 1869, Nicholas Melady was hanged for the murder of his father and stepmother.

Steven Truscott awaited execution in the Huron County Gaol from September 30, 1959, when he was convicted at age 14 of the murder of Lynne Harper, until his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment on January 22, 1960.

[4] The jail and adjoining early 20th century period governor's house opened to the public as a museum on Saturday June 29, 1974.

The museum is open to the public from May to October and is owned and operated by the County of Huron.