Kosciusko County Jail
county jail of Kosciusko County, located in Warsaw, Indiana
The first Kosciusko County Jail was built in 1837 of 14 inches (36 cm) square logs. It was two stories tall with a trap door from the second story floor to access the ground floor. The next jail was made of brick. Like the first jail, it was located on Courthouse Square. By 1869 this second structure was in serious need of repair. Frequent jail breaks from the second jail, led the county to hire George Garnsey of Chicago to design a new jail. The most notable jailbreak resulted when prisoners pushed bricks out of the wall.
Design
The jail is two stories on an elevated basement. The main entrance is up a flight of steps. Two windows flank the stairs on the basement level.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Kosciusko County Jail” as county jail of Kosciusko County, located in Warsaw, Indiana. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as county jail of Kosciusko County, located in Warsaw, Indiana. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q20711132. Authority coordinates are 41.239, -85.856. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1837 and 1869.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kosciusko County Jail”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kosciusko County Jail primary sources, Kosciusko County Jail archive and Kosciusko research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kosciusko County Jail”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kosciusko County Jail” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.