The McDonald Brothers Company was well known for its jail and public building designs throughout the South and Midwest.

The May, 1892 Superior Court Minutes of the Grand Jury expressed great satisfaction with the new jail.

The Old Jail used an innovative heating system design which closely approached that of an experiment.

The theory was that the warm air would be conducted through the ducts and transmitted to the cells through the porous limestone walls and floor.

Unfortunately, the heating system failed to function as expected and the engineering gaffe was one reason the jail was used for only about 20 years.

The two-story building encompasses approximately 1350 square feet and sits on .22 acres.

It was designed in the Romanesque Revival style popular during the late nineteenth century.

The style is evidenced in the solidarity and strength exhibited in the square brick pillars, the shadow-box plaque and dentil designs, and the rough stone banding.

A series of small round head arches form a pattern across the gabled portion of the roof.

The jail had a solitary confinement area just inside the front door and the original iron bars remain.

Thereafter, the building was altered to suit various functions including apartments, a café, and a special event venue.

Many of the limestone blocks were removed and some are used as patios on the east and north sides of the building.

Many of the limestone blocks contain easily seen Paleozoic marine fossils, including stromatoporoids (a kind of extinct sea sponge).